TCC Book V: Time Vortex One
by The Universal Storyteller
Summary: Book 5 of at least 7, if not more. Its series is set mostly during the MK's Silver Millennium! Story Complete! I finished writing this tale sometime in 2003, but it still took far too many years to finally get completely posted here. Hope you enjoyed it! It will be edited and/or revised later on, if possible, once Books III & IV are completely edited/revised too. TUS out.
1. Chapter One

This next adventure for many of the current Sailor Scouts should be quite challenging for them, and they may even meet a lot of people they never would think they'd ever meet in their respective lives. For many, if not all, of them, they might even find themselves traveling through time for the first time in their lives, in fact.

Who's going to find themselves involved in this adventure and who's going to stay behind on the Moon of the AD 980's? To find out, you'll all just have to wait and see, of course, folks.

But I will say this, at least. This story will start with a couple of discussions about at least one or two strange dreams, if not more, that Serena has been having for a while before it opens. For more information, however, you'll all just have to read on, in any case.

With no further ado, then, folks, I shall now start this tale that's been written out completely for more than fifteen years, in fact, called _Time Vortex One_. I really hope that you come to enjoy it, at least for the most part, by the time I'm finally able to finish posting it up here to this site, of course, for sure. But if you don't, then so be it. TUS out.

* * *

 _Time Vortex One_

A _The Chrysanthemum Chronicles_ Series Story

* * *

Inside Serena's Chambers In The Crystal Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

June 10, 987

It was a bright late spring morning, as Serena was getting ready to train as a Scout again elsewhere on the Crystal Palace's grounds in Moon City. Her mother's cat Luna was now with her, at least for a while. Little did she know that within a week, at most, if not just a few hours or days, that she and other members of her current crowd would find themselves another adventure. The exact nature of that adventure wasn't yet known. But if it was enough like one or more of the adventures she'd already had in her life, Serena and many members of her own crowd might learn it soon enough. Even her twin sisters Destiny and Bethany, if not others as well, might learn the exact nature of that adventure in the near future. Whether or not they really wanted to learn it.

Of all the adventures that Serena and other members of her current crowd had ever had in their lives, none of them were anything like the adventure that might come their ways soon enough, if not right away. True, many of them had also been brought to another galaxy in the known Universe at least once before. But even that adventure hadn't been a lot like the one that'd probably be coming their way in the very near future, if not immediately.

For it'd likely be taking them where they least expected it to, and bringing them in contact with people they might not ever expect to meet while they were in the middle of it. People who might even be ancestors of their own, or descendants, or contemporaries, or not any of those things at all. Which it'd be for any people they might encounter during that adventure wasn't yet known, if it'd ever be by all the concerned members of Serena's current crowd.

Serena was talking to Luna, as she was getting ready for her next training session. Luna had just asked her, "Serena, what do you think will happen for us when our next adventure comes to us all?" It was now about 7:15 am local time, if not later.

Serena said, "I don't know, Luna. But I have this strange feeling that it might be like no other adventure we've yet had in our lives."

"Why's that?"

"Because I saw several other Scouts that we've never met before with us in a weird dream last night."

"I see. Could you probably tell me who they were, by any chance?"

"I can't be sure, at least not yet. But it seemed to me that Sailors Calypso, Chrysalis, Skyhorse, and Peppermint might have been in my dream."

"Which Sailor Skyhorse, if she was actually in your dream?"

"Not the Sailor Skyhorse that we all know and love, I think. But as I said, I can't be sure that she's one of the Sailors I saw last night in my dreams, Luna."

"Anyone else?"

"I can't really be sure, at least among any others that we've never met before, who might have been in my dream. That's because all the others I'm not yet all that familiar with in my life, if I'll ever be familiar enough with them in it, seemed to often be surrounded by a whole lot of fog, Luna."

"I see. Do you think that we should tell your siblings and your parents, at least, about this particular dream of yours from last night?"

"I don't know, Luna. I just don't know. If I would, how am I to know that this won't force Dad away from us, and ultimately cause him to die at the hands of our Negaverse enemies?"

"Serena, I'm sure that your mother would want you to tell her about that dream of yours, no matter how scary it might seem to you. And I'm sure that your twin sisters and your Dad, at least, would feel the same way about you telling or not telling about it. And you know the rest of your crowd, like Raye, for example, might want you to tell them about it as well, Serena."

"Sometimes I wish I didn't have all these dreams and visions I've had for practically all my life, Luna."

"Maybe so, but at least for now, you do."

"I don't want to see them, if I don't have to. I just want to have a nice and peaceful life, and not have to worry about other beings trying to destroy everyone and everything that we care for in our lives, Luna. Is that so wrong?"

"No, of course it's not, Serena. But maybe somebody's trying to teach you how to be responsible enough in your life."

"Maybe they are. But sometimes, it seems like they think that we're just cosmic jokes, of at least one sort, here in God's Universe."

"You don't think God is trying to play such jokes on us, do you, Serena?" asked Luna.

"No, of course not, Luna. He created everything and everyone in this Universe. Or at least He might have inspired everyone and everything in it," answered Serena.

"Even the Negaversers who seek to destroy us?"

"Yes, I believe so. But I also believe that if He did, someone of quite an evil nature eventually seduced all the current Negaversers' respective ancestors, and got them to turn bad in their lives. And they taught their descendants to do the same thing, I think. Over time, even more of their descendants turned bad. And now we have Negaversers controlling much, if not all, of Earth's continental landmass of South America, Luna. Or at least I think that's how the Negaversers got to be who they are now."

"So do you think that the Negaversers consider all their enemies in the Universe to be just cosmic jokes of at least one sort?"

"I wouldn't be very surprised if they did, Luna."

"And if we are, I suppose that they might consider themselves to be our so-called cosmic jokes' respective punchlines, if I follow your logic accurately enough, Serena."

"Perhaps, Luna. Perhaps. But if so, I hope that they're all wrong, for all the obvious reasons, of course."

Only a few moments later, then, they both exited Serena's chambers. And they both headed toward the Sailor Scout Garden so that they could meet up with other members of Serena's current crowd. They went there together, but not directly. For Serena briefly detoured to the main dining hall for at least a few minutes, if not even longer than that, to get herself, at least, if not also Luna, some food and drink. Of course, Luna followed Serena wherever she went, so that she'd not lose track of Serena too soon. Serena and Luna went to the main dining hall together because Serena hadn't yet been able to have herself some breakfast. That was due to the fact that she'd been summoned for her next training session no more than about twenty or thirty minutes before 7 in the morning, local time.

On the way to the Sailor Scout Garden, by way of the main dining hall, Serena soon said to Luna, "I really don't like these early morning training sessions, Luna."

"Maybe not. But if we train in the daytime, whenever possible, it might be harder for the Negaversers in their Zone of Darkness back on Earth to see us do so. While if we do so at night, and this side of the Moon is facing either toward Earth or toward their portal that's allowing them access to Earth, they might see us quite a bit earlier than if we train where it's day on the Moon."

"Because they'd have a dark background to make us stand out more, whenever we'd train at night?"

"Yes, I believe so. A keen-eyed Negaverser might see the light from our activities easier against a dark background than a light one, Serena. A lot of light often seems to show whenever you're training as Scouts. And if we train where that light might be more visible to them, then we essentially may give away our positions to our enemies before we want to, if we ever do want to give away our positions to them. So we have to try training where they won't find that light as easily as they might if we didn't."

Eventually, Serena and Luna both arrived in the Sailor Scout Garden. When they did, they were met there by several other girls, and at least one woman. Not the least of them being Destiny and Bethany, who were now just about to turn eight years old, almost twenty days before their sister Serena's next birthday, which'd be her eleventh, if she was somehow able to survive at least that long in her life.

One of the girls there said, "I see the Moon Princess has finally showed up here in this garden again, after having been summoned to this place here just about an hour or so ago."

Serena said, "Raye, I came just as soon as I could. You know I had to eat before I trained again, I hope."

"Just how much stuff exactly did you just put away, Serena?" asked a Martian girl with mostly waist-length black hair, and who Serena had just talked to.

"Enough to not make me hungry for at least as long as we're training again, Raye, as a matter of fact."

"One session only, or more than one?" asked Raye.

"At least until lunchtime, if you really must know, but certainly not past suppertime, Raye."

"I see. And I hope you left enough for the rest of us later on."

"Of course I did. I don't always pig out on food and drink, Raye."

"Enough, girls. I think you all need to train again. But we can't do it on the other side of the Moon, for the Negaversers' portal is currently trying to see if any of us are training on that side of the Moon," interjected a mostly white-haired woman in her early forties. That woman was Serena, Destiny, and Bethany's mother, of course. And she was Queen Serenity, as well.

Serenity had turned 42 during the previous February. And she was also a rather new mother of quintuplets, by her dear husband of many years, Prince Daniel. She currently was the ruler of the Moon Kingdom on the Moon. She had six daughters and two sons, with the five quintuplets just mentioned being three girls and two boys. Serena was her and Daniel's oldest daughter, while Destiny and Bethany were her and Daniel's second and third daughters, respectively. Her fourth, seventh, and eighth children were also daughters for her and Daniel, while their two sons were her fifth and sixth children, by logical extension. She'd had the quintuplets about six weeks before. Her twin daughters would turn eight the following day, about twenty days before Serena herself became eleven years old.

Now with her, Serena, Destiny, Bethany, and Luna, in the Sailor Scout Garden were several other young girls, as well as one cat that also belonged to her. That cat was called Artemis, and that cat was a male cat. In fact, he was currently the only male in that garden.

Besides Serenity, her cats, and her three present daughters, other girls in the garden included Raye, of course. At least one girl now in the garden was from each of the planets in the Milky Way Galaxy's Sol solar system, with the exception of Earth, which wasn't actually a member of the Moon Kingdom. Though they did have at least a few friends in their lives from Earth, those friends were not currently present in the Sailor Scout Garden. Whether they'd see any, or all, of those friends from Earth, however, wasn't yet known, if it'd ever be, at least during their next adventure as Scouts.

Serenity and all her current companions, except for the cats Luna and Artemis, were secretly Sailor Scouts in the Moon Kingdom. Amy Anderson, who was a Mercurian girl, was now standing near Destiny and Bethany in the garden. Destiny and Bethany Moon were currently linked together by a cord tied to one of each of their wrists. For Destiny was normally blind, and Bethany was normally deaf. Raye Hino was standing between Bethany's right side and Serenity's left side. On Serenity's right side, Artemis was sitting on a stone table situated to the left of a blonde Venusian girl named Mina Abernathy. To Mina's right, and to Serena's left, as Serena and Luna were both now facing Serenity, was an auburn-haired Jupiterian girl, a tall girl named Lita McKinley. On the other side of Serena, as Luna sat on Serena's right shoulder, stood a girl about eight months older than Serena, a black-haired Plutonian girl named Susan Meyers. To Susan's right, in what appeared to be an arch formation somewhere in the garden, an aqua green-haired Neptunian girl named Michelle Gallenski stood. To Michelle's right, a girl about five months older than Serena stood. This girl to Michelle's right was a Uranusian girl with short blonde hair. And she had the name of Alexis Herschel. And just across the formation from Amy's current position in it, there stood a black-haired Saturnian girl with the name of Hannah Tompkins.

Currently, they were the only females in the garden. But they weren't the only Scouts who were from their respective planets' mini-systems anywhere in the Moon Kingdom of the Milky Way Galaxy's Sol solar system. Other Scouts were otherwise occupied. But they might or might not join up with Serena and the rest of her current companions in the very near future. Only time would tell, however, if and when that ever became true.

At the moment, Serenity had her current companions with her in the Sailor Scout Garden. For she wanted to make sure all the necessary girls were now present and accounted for, before she'd want them to train again with each other and herself. Yes, herself, for she too was a Scout. And she was the current leader of the Scouts, as a matter of fact, whether she was in her Royal Sailor Serenity state or her Sentinel Serenity state as a Scout.

But she wasn't the actual founder of the Sailor Scouts. For the Scouts had been founded in the now-distant past by one of the former rulers either of the Moon Kingdom, or of a prior government anywhere on the Moon. Which it was for sure, not many people in the Moon Kingdom currently knew, if any people at all in it knew which it was for sure. They often did know, though, that it was founded by the beginning of the current Silver Millennium that Serenity was now ruling the Moon Kingdom in.

Currently, all the girls with her now were Princesses from their respective Moon Kingdom worlds, with Serena being the highest-ranking of all of those girls. This was due to the fact that she was the current Moon Princess because of her current position in her family. Serenity had earlier chosen Serena as her intended successor to the Moon Kingdom's throne, if possible. But she and many other sentient beings in the Moon Kingdom suspected such a thing might not ever come to pass. Or that it might not come to pass for at least a millennium, if not even longer than that, in God's very own Universe. That was if it ever might come to pass in the future. Those sentient beings also included Serena, of course.

Serenity had all her current non-feline companions sign, or sound off. And do so as the case might be for each of them, one girl at a time, starting with Serena. She soon accounted for all of them. Then she said, "Girls, I want all of you girls in the main ballroom within one hour after I dismiss you all from here again, at most. I want you all to pack rather light, if possible. I want you to bring only your most necessary items there by then. We've got to pack rather light, most likely. For we may need to move fast, girls, at any time. It seems that some rather strange things have been happening of late near Crescent. And I don't think they have anything at all to do with any of our eight Peruvian friends, at least not yet. We'll probably not have much free time on our next mission, whatever that mission might be. So you girls should probably leave all your non-essential items here in Moon City. I don't know exactly where we're going on the Moon. But I do know that I have a very strange feeling that something's not quite as it should be. I don't know what's causing those strange things. But I have a few ideas in mind about who or what might possibly be causing them. I don't think that we'll all have much free time to enjoy ourselves wherever we're going to go on the Moon. But I think that we'll all often be quite busy, wherever we all happen to go on it."

"How light would you like us all to pack, Mother?" asked Serena.

"Not more than fifteen percent of your own body weights for any, or all, of you girls, in any case. At least whenever you're not in your own Scout states, no matter how strong each of you may be in your own lives. I'll be carrying no more than twenty percent of my own body weight. For I'll have to carry all the necessary things for Luna and Artemis, of course. I don't want you girls to bring more than about 200 pounds of weight, in any case, and probably not more than about 150 or so pounds of weight, overall."

"What about our clothes, Mother?"

"You all should bring at least one cold-weather outfit apiece with you. For we may find ourselves in mountain ranges or in either of the Moon's polar regions, Serena. And at least one warm-weather and one hot-weather outfit apiece, for we may go where such outfits are necessary wear for each of us. You'll all need to make sure that only your most essential items get packed, girls. For if anything gets in that isn't essential for us to use on our next mission, it could pose serious problems for us on it, whatever kind of mission it might be."

"So we shouldn't pack more than two tiaras, for instance, probably?"

"Correct, Serena. I don't expect you girls to bring any scrolls with you. And I hope you girls don't pack any. For if you do, something else may not be able to be included which is more essential than them on the mission, girls. If you have any things that are very important to you all in your life, at least here in the Crystal Palace, I hope you won't pack them. I'll be checking your things before we depart, so that I can be as sure as I can that you've all packed sufficiently well before then. So don't try to sneak anything by me at all."

Not very long afterward, Serenity dismissed all her current companions for a while. After doing that, she soon checked on all five of the quintuplets for at least a few minutes. After she did that, she quite hastily and quite efficiently packed all the most essential items in her things.

While she was doing the necessary packing, her husband Prince Daniel asked her, "Niti, do you feel it's really necessary for you and others to go away again?"

"I'm afraid so, darling. I wish I didn't have to, of course. But it seems that I and others have to investigate the rather strange things that seem to be happening of late in the Crescent area of the Moon."

"But don't you think the quintuplets will need you here more?"

"Probably so, Daniel. But I wonder if these strange things have anything at all to do with them, just the same. For all I know, not investigating these things might cause me to lose you eventually."

"Maybe so. And maybe not. But don't you think that it'd be best for you to stay here in Moon City for a time, until we know for sure why those things might be happening now in Crescent's area of the Moon?"

"It might be, Daniel. But have you ever known me to not want to investigate things that seem rather strange in their respective natures? I don't think so. And if they're being caused by what I think they are, then I, at least, if nobody else as well, have to be where they're taking place now."

"Because you're the leader of our Moon Kingdom?"

"Perhaps so, Daniel. Believe me, there's nothing I'd really love more right now than to stay in Moon City with you and the quints. But as long as some things may possibly be happening that could easily cause major trouble for us here in the Moon Kingdom, anywhere here on the Moon, I have to do what I can to try to find out as much as I can about such things. Whether I may like it or not."

Just then, before Daniel would have commented again, a few knocks were heard on Serenity's door. Queen Serenity asked the knocker, a few seconds later, "Who's there?"

"Mother, it's Serena. I think I need to talk to you two, at the very least, if at all possible."

Serenity asked, "Serena, is this important?"

"I think so, Mother."

"How important?"

"I can't say for sure, Mother, but it seems rather important. Do you two mind if I come in for a while?"

"Are you packed yet?"

"Yes. My things are now being guarded in the main ballroom by Destiny and Bethany, as we now speak."

Serenity briefly conversed with Daniel, and then she said, "Very well, Serena. I'll let you in. But if this isn't very important, I'll not be all that happy, of course."

Serenity went to the door of her chambers, and let Serena into them, in very short order. That done, Serena sat down on a nearby chair in them, once her mother let her do so.

As soon as both her parents had done the same, and were comfortable enough in other chairs near her own, Serena said, "Mom, I had this quite weird dream last night. And I think you need to hear about it. So did Luna, when I discussed it with her not long after you rang me."

"I suppose you feel that we need to discuss it. For you're obviously here, Serena," said Serenity.

"Yes, of course I do."

"Then tell us about it, Serena."

"All right, I will, Mother. I'll start by asking you a question, then, Mother."

"Oh, Serena?"

"When was the last time that you actually saw Grandma as a Sailor Scout?"

"My mother or your Dad's mother, Serena?"

"Your mother, Mom."

"Just before she left here aboard the _M.K.S. Crescent_ , Serena."

"I see. Well, it seems I saw her in my dream last night, though I'm not sure enough yet if I actually did see her in it last night."

"Why?"

"Because if she was actually in my dream, she was in the middle of a whole lot of fog, it seems. She and at least three other Scouts from at least a while ago, if not even earlier than that, in our Moon Kingdom's own history, Mother, as a matter of fact, were in the middle of a whole lot of fog in my dream."

"You mean to say you might have seen Sailor Peppermint?"

"Possibly, though I can't be sure enough yet, I believe, Mom."

Daniel asked, "Who else do you think you might have seen and heard in your dream from last night, Serena?"

"Sailors Chrysalis, Calypso, and Skyhorse, at least, I think, Dad."

"Which Sailor Skyhorse?" asked Serenity.

"The Moon-born Skyhorse, Mom."

"So you think you might have seen Queen Anne IV in your dream last night, Serena?"

"It's possible, I think. But if so, she seemed to be from a time before she ever became Queen of our Moon Kingdom. Like when she was still Jostara Wallace, if I remember enough things about her easily enough, Mother. I don't think the Sailor Skyhorse I may have seen in my dream was more than about twenty or so years old, though I could be wrong, for all the obvious reasons."

"So you think that she was from a time about a hundred or so years ago, Serena?"

"I think so, if not even more than that, Mother."

"I see. Well, if you saw Sailor Peppermint, she had to have been from no later than about twenty to thirty years ago, for she was lost to us in AD 965, Serena, when the _M.K.S. Crescent_ blew up."

"True, Mother."

"As for Sailors Chrysalis and Calypso, they were both lost to us about nine or so centuries ago, if I remember our Moon Kingdom's history well enough, Serena."

"Then I don't understand why they might have been in my dream last night. Or at least I don't understand why they were in it last night, if I ever will, Mom. Supposing they actually were in it then, of course."

"Nor do I, Serena. But if they were, there must be a reason. For normally, you don't dream of people that we lost quite so long ago, Serena. Normally, you only dream of people you currently know, or you dream of the future, whenever you dream, I believe. And I believe that your visions generally happen for you like your dreams do, Serena. You rarely, if ever, dream of things and people in the past, as far as I know, Serena."

"But do you think we'll find out how come I might have seen and/or heard those Scouts in my dream last night, Dad?"

"I think so, Serena. I don't think God will keep you in the dark about them forever. Sure, He may keep things hidden for a while, for His own reasons. But have you ever actually known Him to play tricks on you with your dreams and visions?"

"No, I can't say that I have ever known Him to do that, Dad. I'm sure that if we're meant to know why I dreamed what I dreamed last night, He'll somehow make it possible for us to know why I dreamed what I dreamed then. It may be a while before He does, or it may not. But only time will tell, of course, Dad."

"But you hope that when we learn why you dreamed what you dreamed, that won't force me to leave you all behind for elsewhere in God's own Universe, don't you?"

"Sure, I do hope that, Dad."

"Well, if it does, then I hope that you'll be able to help your Mom with all your siblings, at least, if nothing else as well in your life, Serena," said her Dad.

"So do I, Dad. But I don't really want to lose you."

"Nor does your mother, Serena. But she realizes that certain things that might relate sufficiently to me might not be quite under our control. And if so, then I may have to leave you all behind, whether or not I want to then."

"But won't that be fair to us, Mom?"

"Serena, we can't control everything that happens to us in our lives, no matter how much we might prefer otherwise. I didn't really want to have to make you all Scouts, but I had to. Our situation about a year ago made it necessary. However, I really tried to put it off for as long as I possibly could put it off, so that you girls had as much of a carefree childhood as possible. I have this rather unpleasant feeling that sometime in January 991 or so, they'll probably come, and they'll come in full force, if they do. When they finally do, we may all have to make very important decisions on a split-second basis, whether we like it or not. If you girls are close enough to me then, I may or may not be able to save you all. But I really don't expect that your Dad will be one of those people I'll somehow be able to save then."

Serena and both her parents talked at least a little bit longer with each other about Serena's dream of the night before. And they did so, at least until Serenity said, "Serena, I think we'd better go to the main ballroom again, before everyone else wonders where we are."

"As you wish, Mother."

Then Serenity let Serena out for a time, and sent her to the main ballroom. After she did so, she said, once she'd shut the door again as needed, "Daniel, I hope that if things are to be as they seemed to be to her, that we're all able to get back here again. And I hope we can all do so easily enough, and safely enough, of course. I don't really want to be away from you and the quints, if I don't have to be. But it looks like I'll have to be away from you all for at least a little while again. I really hope you're not mad that I quite apparently have to go away again."

"Of course I'm not mad at you, at least, if I'm mad at anything at all, dear. I just wish that I and the quints could be with you a lot more than we normally are, Niti."

"If possible, one day, we'll just go away for a while and try to have another honeymoon period, Daniel. But if it isn't possible, then I fully hope to see you upstairs in the Celestial City someday, honey."

Serenity went to her husband and kissed him for a few moments, and let him kiss her too at least a few times. And they embraced for a while too, of course, before Serenity rather reluctantly had to leave him again. When she did, she picked up all her necessary things, and left her chambers behind again. As she was leaving them, she reminded him to lock them quite securely when he left as well. He agreed to do so, and then she left him alone in them for at least a little while.

* * *

A lot more is going to happen in this story, and a lot of people you may not expect to appear may appear in it, while others most likely will not. As for whether or not there will be much of anything directly related to the Negaverse present in this story, you'll all just have to read on and find out, of course.

But for now, feel free to speculate and wonder about just what may happen here in this story, given what you know of it to date, if and when you like, folks. Until later, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	2. Chapter Two

Here is the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , and it will have a lot of discussion between the Scouts about certain things, especially about what might next happen for them and others in their lives, before they leave Moon City again for somewhere else on the Moon. They haven't yet found their next adventure, but it's still on the way, trust me. That adventure will begin in chapter three, for sure, after a bit of discussion with their Peruvian friends, among other things.

With no further ado, then, I present you with the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , and hope that you all will come along with me and all the Scouts and Monitors and the cats as the nature of the coming adventure for them all is ultimately revealed. Until later, then, TUS out.

* * *

Main Ballroom In The Crystal Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

June 10, 987

While Serena and her parents were discussing Serena's dream of the night before, several of the Princesses were waiting for Serena and her mother to come to the main ballroom as planned. Among them, of course, was Raye, and she didn't know yet why Serena wasn't currently present in the main ballroom. Also there were Amy, Lita, Mina, Destiny, Bethany, Susan, Hannah, Alexis, Michelle, and both cats, at least, if not other Princesses as well.

Raye asked, "Does anyone know why Serena's not here right now?"

Destiny said, a few seconds later, at most, "She's talking with Mom and Dad about something she thinks is rather important, Raye."

"Do you know what it is, Destiny?"

"I think it has something to do with at least one, if not more than one, of her dreams. But Serena didn't share much about such a thing, if it does have at least something to do with what she's discussing with our parents right now. That's if she shared anything at all about such a thing with Bethany and/or me, of course, Raye."

"I hope that it's got nothing to do with me, then, Destiny."

"I don't know if it does, or if it doesn't, Raye, and neither does Bethany. It could, or it couldn't, have anything to do with you."

"And this is why she's not here with us right now, I suppose."

"I'd not be all that surprised if that's the case, in actual reality, Raye Hino."

"I see, Destiny."

Amy asked Destiny, "Did she say how long this discussion of hers with your parents might take?"

"No, I don't believe so, Amy."

"But if she's going to keep us from leaving here when we're planning to, Destiny, could it be that it'll take at least a little while to finish discussing whatever she's talking about with your parents?"

"I suppose it's possible, Amy. I don't know how likely it might be, but I would think that it might be possible, if the discussion happens to last long enough between her and them."

Mina asked, "Destiny, are you wondering what will happen next for us all, by any chance?"

"Sure I am, Mina. But aren't all of us often doing that in our lives, if not all the time?"

"I suppose that's true, Destiny. Do you have any idea what might happen for us, then, on our next adventure as Scouts?"

"Not really. But sometimes, I'm glad that I don't see with my physical eyes, Mina, at least not whenever I'm not in my Scout state, in my life."

"Why's that, if I may ask you this?"

"Because, Mina, I don't have to see a lot of things most people might consider rather disturbing, whenever I'm not in my Scout state."

"I suppose that can be a good thing, at least sometimes, if not all the time, whenever you're not actually in your Scout state, Destiny."

"Bethany also is often glad she doesn't have to worry so much about having her ears blasted out by really loud band music, Mina."

"I understand that, Destiny. But sometimes, the fact that she's normally deaf could pose problems for us whenever we need to talk to her, and communicate with each other."

Bethany saw Lita translate that into sign language, and then said, "Mina, I realize that might be the case often, but I'm still glad that I normally won't have to worry about having my ears blasted out by especially loud music, most especially by quite loud band music."

Lita asked Bethany, "Do you sometimes wish that you could normally hear like we do, Bethany?"

"Not often, if at all, Lita. I don't want to have to go through another ear-related operation ever again. Or at least not until I'm eighteen or so, if not longer than that, do I want to do that, if I don't absolutely have to do that. And I know that Destiny doesn't really want any further eye-related operations in the future, if she doesn't absolutely have to have them in the future. Sure, it might mean that she'll spend most, if not all, of her remaining life normally blind. But she doesn't want to have any more operations to try to help her gain more, if not total, sight, in her life, if she doesn't have to have them in it. And I feel the same way about operations on my ears to try to gain more, if not total, hearing that she does about operations on her eyes, Lita. Even if I'm normally deaf most, if not all, of the rest of my life, I still feel that way about such operations on my ears."

"You'd willingly be deaf most, if not all, of the time in your life, if you could be, Bethany?" asked Amy.

"Yes, I believe I would, Amy."

"Even if you might not hear something you might really need to hear?"

"Even if that's the case, I think so, Amy."

Susan soon asked Destiny, "But you can see when you're in your Scout state. Why not stay in it all the time, if you can?"

"Susan, I don't want to spend the rest of my life in my Scout state if I don't have to. I don't think that I could keep myself in it for the rest of my life, anyway. Even if I wanted to, Susan."

"Even if it might help you save any or all of us Scouts?"

"Yes, I think so, Susan."

"I see, Destiny."

"I may not survive if I don't stay in my Scout state all the time. But I hope that I do, of course, if I have to be in it most, if not all, of the time in whatever time I have left in my life. Serena seems to often think that a good number of us will be able to be saved by Mother, however, Susan."

"Like who, if you can tell me?"

"I really think that if the visions and/or dreams of Serena and enough other people in our Moon Kingdom are accurate enough in each of their respective natures, Mom will be able to somehow save at least Serena, Amy, Raye, Lita, Mina, Alexis, Michelle, Hannah, Luna, Artemis, Darien, Greg, Chad, Ken, Steven, Samuel, and you, Susan, if not anyone else we might know well enough, as well. Of course, that might also mean that Bethany, me, and so many others might be lost because of our enemies. But I still hope that we all do manage to survive into the future, somehow, Susan. I'd hate for Serena to lose all her siblings, if she doesn't actually have to lose them, of course. Especially me and Bethany. I'd love to be with her for as long as possible into the future. But we'll have to see how things go for us all, just the same."

Alexis asked Destiny, "And if we did survive somehow, where do you think that your mother would send those of us she was able to save?"

"Into at least one of eight different Zones on Earth, I suppose, Alexis, if not also to any other place in this Universe of God's and ours. I could be wrong, of course, but I think that she'll be able to do that at least once for each of us who she's somehow able to save from here."

"And do you actually know where each of those Zones of Earth are right now on it?" asked Michelle, in somewhat of a curious manner, if not totally in such a manner.

"No, I don't, Michelle. If I did, I don't even know if I could tell you where those Zones are on Earth's planetary surface. But I'd not be surprised if any or all of us end up somehow in Darien's nation, if she's able to save any of us easily enough to send us to one or more of those Zones on Earth. Supposing, of course, that I'd somehow be able to be saved by her, so that I could have a life in the future somewhere on Earth, at least once."

"And if she isn't able to save you?"

"Then I think you people who somehow survive us might eventually see me again in the Celestial City, if it's God's will that you ever do so again in the future. And I really do hope that I'm with anyone else that she's not able to somehow save then in the Celestial City, while I'm still waiting and still hoping for the rest of you to get up there too, Michelle."

Luna said, "I don't know how many of us Queen Serenity will be able to save, of course. But I think that she'll somehow be able to save at least some of us, if not all of us, girls."

"And if she does, will I probably be quite lonely, like I often seem to be, Luna?"

"I don't know, Hannah. But we'll just have to see, if at all possible, won't we?"

"I suppose you're right, Luna. But at least as long as we live here, it sometimes seems like Alexis, Michelle, and Susan don't often like being around me, at least. That's whether or not the rest of you often feel the same way as they apparently do toward me, of course."

"Hannah, they may or may not like often being with you. But they'll still have to be with you periodically, I think, in the future, if you and they survive somehow. Things about you may frighten them, as I know you've said at least once before, in front of them. But they'll still have to deal with you in the future, if Queen Serenity is able to save you and them somehow, Hannah," said Artemis.

"But I don't often like being alone, if ever at all, Artemis."

"I can see how you might feel that way, but sometimes working alone is a good thing."

"Even if it puts a whole lot of people in great, if not grave, danger, Artemis? I really don't see how it can often be a good thing for a person to be away from everyone else in their life so much of the time. Sure, it might occasionally be a good thing. But I don't often think that it's as much of a good thing as it isn't a good thing."

"You'd prefer to be around people, whenever possible?"

"Sure I would. But do most people here in the Moon Kingdom often want to be with me, at least among those that I've actually met often enough in my life? I don't think so, Artemis. I really don't think so. It's like they're often quite afraid of me. For they often act like I might know something that might really scare the living daylights out of them, so to speak. Supposing that such a thing or such things could possibly do that somehow in this Universe of ours, of course."

Just then, Serena entered the main ballroom. When she noticed that her fellow Princesses were currently chatting with each other, she asked, "What are you all talking about, if I may ask you about such things, girls?"

Raye soon said, "We're all talking about the future. And what may or may not happen in it, if your mother is able to save at least some of us, with her Crystal. We were expecting you here a while ago, Serena."

"Well, I was here earlier. Just ask Bethany and Destiny, and they'll tell you that, Raye."

"But you weren't here when I got here, at least, Serena."

"So? I was with Mom and Dad discussing certain things of at least some importance to me, at least, if not to anyone else here in our own dear Moon Kingdom, Raye."

"I see. And I suppose that this discussion of yours that you just had with your parents had to do with another dream or vision of yours, Serena."

"I can't really say, at least not right now. For Mom asked me not to confirm or deny what our discussion was about, at least for the time being, Raye. Maybe later, when she joins us here, I can. But not right now, so please don't ask me about what we discussed just a while ago with each other and Dad. At least not until she does so."

"And if I would?"

"Then I really don't think that I could tell you anything more about it, at least not while she's not with us, Raye. So please don't even consider pestering me about our just-ended discussion with each other and my Dad, for at least that long, if not longer."

The assembled Princesses and the cats conversed with each other for a while longer. And the girls often wondered what their next adventure as Scouts might actually be like for them all, and for Queen Serenity. That was because it seemed that Serenity would probably be with them all on it. As they were waiting for her to show up again in the main ballroom, they often discussed various things with each other at some length.

Eventually, Serenity showed up in the main ballroom. When she got there, she wasn't yet in her Scout state. For she wanted to make sure that before she and the assembled Princesses left the main ballroom again, they weren't able to sneak anything at all past her. Serenity came there with Daniel. As she'd done at least once before, if she'd reject anything of theirs for their next mission, he and assorted others would be able to return the rejected items to the proper Crystal Palace chambers, after they all left with her. She quite quickly, and quite efficiently, checked all their things. And she soon cleared everything they'd put in their piles to bring with them on their next mission.

Raye had briefly considered possibly trying to sneak at least a few things past Serenity here. But she thought better of it before she left her own chambers. As had both Lita and Mina, in fact. But fortunately for all concerned, none of those girls tried to do that in actual reality. They were the only three Princesses to actually consider the chances of them possibly being able to sneak anything past Serenity. But they, quite soon after doing that, all chose not to try and sneak anything at all past Serenity.

After Serenity had gone through all her companions' things to make as sure as she could that they'd not tried to sneak anything past her in their things, she soon cleared their things for later transport by any required means of transport. When that was done to her heart's content, she said, "Prince Daniel, if something happens to any or all of us while we're elsewhere on the Moon, you know the drill by now. If we can't be found, then Prince Raphael is to take over control of our Moon Kingdom, as the situation might require him to do so. He knows the drill by now as well, of course. He'll have to be in charge, at least while we're all away from here, if we can't be accounted for often enough, Prince Daniel. If we all don't return or check in within the next three or four months, then he is to act as if we may not return here while we're still alive. And he's to take over as the Moon Kingdom's next leader, to the best of his ability to do so, at least until the Negaverse comes, until we return, or until at least one of the quintuplets is somehow able to lead our Moon Kingdom in actual reality, whichever comes first."

"Understood, Queen Serenity."

She briefly conversed a little longer with Daniel, before dismissing him again from the main ballroom. Once she was sure that she was sufficiently alone again with all her remaining companions, she said, "Girls, we need to go to Crescent's Double Earth Palace for the time being. To do that, we'll need to transform."

Moments later, all the assembled Princesses were in their respective Scout states. That done, Serenity had her Scouts cover the available doors of the main ballroom, while she transformed herself into her first-power Sailor Scout state as Royal Sailor Serenity. They did so, at least long enough for her to do so, if not longer. After she'd transformed herself into such a Scout state of hers, she told her Scouts to gather up all their things, as she picked up her things and the cats' things.

After they did so, Royal Sailor Serenity said, "Girls, we all need to get to the Sailor Scout Garden now, before we all go to the Double Earth Palace. That is so we can access the required underground cavern, of course. Gather around me, and take up positions quite close to me. Luna and Artemis, please climb on my shoulders now, and hang on them to the best of your abilities to do so."

The Junior Sailor Scouts did as had just been ordered of them by Royal Sailor Serenity, as both Luna and Artemis also got on Royal Sailor Serenity's shoulders. After they'd taken up the necessary positions either on or around her, she told her Scouts to prepare to use their Sailor Teleport abilities, so they could leave the main ballroom for the Sailor Scout Garden with them. Those Scouts did so, and when the situation required them to speak, they did so. And when they did so, they all began teleporting to the Sailor Scout Garden from the Crystal Palace's main ballroom in Moon City.

Shortly after they got done with doing so, they were all in the Sailor Scout Garden. Serenity accounted for the presence of all necessary people and cats. And she did this just before she and her companions accessed a cavern somewhere under the Crystal Palace, and before they went to the required part of it.

Minutes later, they were all actually at that part of it. And they were all moving to stand upon certain tiles in the middle of a depression there. Just as they'd all done at least once or twice before in each of their own lives, if they had to do that. Because Luna and Artemis were still on Royal Sailor Serenity's shoulders, they didn't have to stand on them. Royal Sailor Serenity had her Scouts each go to the necessary tiles in that depression first. And then she went to the tile that she had to go to in it, as well.

Moments later, the part of the cavern those tiles were in was again empty. That was because all the beings on or above those tiles had left that part of the cavern behind for Crescent's Double Earth Palace on the Moon. Nothing was left behind there that didn't actually need to be left there by any of the Scouts that'd just been in that cavern for any reason at all. No matter what it was, nothing that didn't need to be left there by any of the Scouts was left there, when they all eventually left the cavern behind for somewhere else on the Moon. Specifically for the Double Earth Palace of Crescent on it.

As they were teleporting, they bounced off the Moon's primary sun shield, because they'd need to do that to teleport themselves to Crescent's Double Earth Palace. While they were teleporting, they were all light. Eventually, they all materialized in the Double Earth Palace's South Garden in Crescent. When they arrived there, nobody else was in that garden, as expected by Royal Sailor Serenity.

After Royal Sailor Serenity accounted for all her Scouts and both cats, she said, "Girls, I'll want you to meet me in the main dining hall of this palace within two hours, at most. But I don't want you girls to get too far away from there or here in the meantime. Yes, you can all go to each of your chambers here. But if you do, you won't likely have a lot of time that you can spend in them, before I want you all in this palace's main dining hall."

Moon asked, "Why within two hours, Mother?"

"Because, Moon, we'll need to be meeting with our Peruvian friends by then. It seems that they have several things that they need to discuss with us. And they need us there in the main dining hall by then."

"I see. I hope that they can explain sufficiently well why we can't be back home in the Crystal Palace."

"I think they'll be able to do that well enough, Moon."

"Well, Mom, we'll have to see about that, won't we?"

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Moon. But I really hope that you're not suggesting that I'm kidding about us having to meet with them here."

"I'm not suggesting that, at least not intentionally. I trust you, Mother. You know I really do, Mom. But I just don't like having to leave Moon City, if I don't really have to at all."

"Moon, is that because you want to be with Darien?" asked Mars.

"Of course it is, Mars. Would you expect anything else from me, in a situation like we may be in now here?"

"Not really, perhaps, Moon. But I sometimes wish that you wouldn't be so possessive when it comes to him and his possible romantic relations with girls. Especially ones from our very own Moon Kingdom."

"Well, he's my honey, Mars. And I'll be doggone possessive of him if I want to, at least as it relates to him and his possible romantic relationships with girls. Supposing that I can be, of course, Mars."

Then Royal Sailor Serenity let her Scouts leave the South Garden for a while, at least, if they really wanted to. And she did the same for both of her cats, also if they wanted to do that. Moments later, she was alone in the South Garden, and walking alone in it.

* * *

That's another chapter down, just before this story's real adventure begins. Things will begin to pick up quite a bit in the next chapter, for sure. Just how they will, you'll all have to keep on reading to find out. But this adventure of theirs will be quite a bit different than any of the ones they had before, even though many of them may have been outside the Milky Way Galaxy before, in any case. For actual time travel will be involved, when it hasn't been before, for many, if not all of them, in truth. That should prove to make this next adventure real interesting for them, not to mention challenging, as well.

Keep reading, and prepare yourselves for an adventure like none of the previous ones for the Scouts that have come before in this series, if you so choose. There's still a lot of things and people to see here, and a lot of the history of the Moon Kingdom in this story's timeline will also be revealed during it, for sure.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. And I hope you all do come to enjoy this story, as it develops, until it's time to end it again, et cetera, of course, folks. TUS out.


	3. Chapter Three

This next chapter is where the real adventure starts to begin for many. Especially after strange things happen in the Crescent area of the Moon that draw the attention of the Scouts and several others in the area. What those strange things are, you'll just have to read this chapter to find out, of course. And once they happen, the Scouts and those with them will have found themselves in a time and/or a place that they've not ever been in before in any of their respective mortal lives, most likely.

They may recognize at least some things where and when they land, but much will be quite unfamiliar to them still, once they do, for sure. As for those they will meet during this adventure of theirs, you'll have to keep reading on to find out just who they are, and from where and when they each come from, of course.

With no further ado, then, folks, I'll give you the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , and hope to see many of you commenting here at least once as this story's adventure is still being revealed, of course. TUS out.

* * *

Main Dining Hall In The Double Earth Palace

Crescent, Moon Kingdom, Moon

June 10, 987

Sometime after Serena and the rest of her current crowd left the South Garden behind for a while, a few of them, at least, eventually met up again with Serena in the main dining hall. Most specifically, they were Amy, Mina, Destiny, Bethany, Raye, and Lita. The other Princesses and both cats weren't there, when they all arrived there within twenty or so minutes, at most, of each other. Serena was the first of the Princesses to get there. And then Amy, Raye, Destiny, Bethany, Mina, and Lita, came in that particular order to the Double Earth Palace's main dining hall, in fact. Serena now was in the middle of consuming several slices of pepperoni pizza and at least one cup of orange juice, if not more than one, when Amy and Raye showed up first with her in the main dining hall. As she was about to take a bite of one of her slices of pizza, Raye said, "I see that Serena's hitting the food pretty hard again."

"Well, hello again to you too, Raye. I'm trying not to pig out here, of course, Raye. But I am quite hungry, even after having eight pieces of pizza, six pancakes, four eggs, three cups of orange juice, and two slices of pie, with one of those pieces being from an apple pie and the other being from a cherry pie."

"Serena, you can't be serious!"

"I am, Raye. I've had that while I was waiting for the rest of you to show up here, in at least ten to twenty minutes or so of time."

"Serena, I suppose you'd eat everything in this palace, if you could," said Raye.

"I don't think so. I couldn't eat the statue of Dad's mother, for instance, Raye."

"Princess Ruth, if I remember correctly?"

"That's right, Raye. Nor would I want to, if I could."

"But you seem to want to pig out on a lot of things," said Raye.

"Raye, that may be true, but it often seems that you want a whole lot of guys hanging alongside you, too."

"Not really, Serena. You can't be serious. The only two boys that I really want quite near me most, if not all, of the time are Chad and Darien."

"So you're saying that you don't actually want a lot of guys on your string, so to speak, Raye?"

"Nope. I'd not mind having Darien, but I'd also not mind possibly ever having Chad, as my future boyfriend and/or husband."

"Darien's mine, Raye. And I hope you never forget that, Mars girl."

"Only if he wants to be yours, Serena. What makes you think that you'll win him over me, besides your dreams and visions?"

"My heart, for one, and my mind, for another. He's mine. He cares deeply for me, I know. Though he may not always seem to show it, he really likes, if not loves, me by now, Raye."

"Then why does he call you a 'you-know-what,' Serena?"

"I suppose he does so for the same reason that any of the rest of you might call me that, Raye."

Lita said, "Raye and Serena, this is pointless discussion, if not arguing, right now, just about food and boys. I hope you two can think of something else to talk about here, at least for a while."

"Lita, that's not necessarily fair," said Raye.

"Can it, Raye, or I may actually have to get after you here. I don't really want to have to do that. But if I still have to do that here, I will. You can be sure of that, at least. There's no sense in getting us all riled up before we can all find out what we have to find out from our Peruvian friends, at least."

Then Raye and the other Princesses now present in the main dining hall all got themselves some food and drink to possibly consume before the planned meeting there, if they'd not already done so. Of course, those Princesses didn't also include Serena. But they did include Raye and the rest of Serena's current companions there.

Not more than twenty or so minutes after the last of them had gotten their food and drink for themselves, other Princesses began arriving in the Double Earth Palace's main dining hall. The first of those other Princesses to appear was Hannah. And she was followed rather closely by Alexis, Michelle, and Susan. Then came both cats, on Serenity's shoulders, followed several minutes later by eight young girls who were actually from the Terran nation of Peru, but who'd had to leave it behind, so that they'd not be killed by beings from the Negaverse. Or at least not killed then by beings from the Negaverse, if they'd ever be killed by such beings in each of their own lives.

Serenity got herself some food and drink, of course. And she let the rest of the Princesses in the main dining hall do the same. That was if they'd not already done so at least once before she'd gotten to the Double Earth Palace's main dining hall. Even the Peruvian Princesses were able to get themselves at least something to eat and drink for a little while, before the meeting would officially begin, in the applicable main dining hall, thanks to Serenity letting them do that.

When Princess Mara Zimak and the rest of her Peruvian Princesses felt that they'd had enough quiet time after getting themselves things to eat and drink, Mara said, "Queen Serenity, if you want to officially begin this meeting of ours, go ahead."

"Thank you, Princess Mara. I now call this meeting to order, and I wish complete silence from all who don't have something to discuss here at the present time."

"Even us, Mother?" asked Serena.

"Yes, of course, even you girls." Serenity was referring to Serena, Amy, and Raye, at least, if not also Lita, Mina, Destiny, Bethany, Hannah, Alexis, Michelle, and Susan.

"Very well, Mother. Amy, Raye, and I, at least, can continue our discussion later, I think, if it's God's will that we ever resume it."

"Thank you, Serena. Now if you Peruvian girls want to begin telling us what you feel you need to tell us here, please go ahead and do so, Mara."

"Thank you, Queen Serenity." Mara looked around at all of her current companions from the Moon Kingdom for a few seconds, and then she began speaking of strange things that'd been happening of late in or near Crescent on the Moon. She said, "It seems that strange things have been happening near here of late. Things like strange electrical storms, or various phenomena that we're not quite familiar with in our lives, at least not yet. Also it sometimes seems like whirlpools are often appearing in the areas near here, or at least things that look and act a lot like whirlpools, people."

"Can you describe them adequately enough?" asked Serenity.

"Sometimes, they seem to shine in many different colors. And they often seem to give us glimpses of places I don't think any of our people have ever been in before, if we'll ever be in such places," said Mara.

"Mara, what do you think might be causing such phenomena in this area of the Moon?"

"I don't know for sure, Queen Serenity. But I'd not be all that surprised if the Negaversers we're up against have at least something to do with each of them, I believe."

Serenity considered the chances that their Negaverser enemies could be causing such strange things to happen, at least in the Crescent local area of the Moon, if not elsewhere in the Moon Kingdom. And she did so for at least a few moments after Mara had just answered her last question. After doing so, she said, "I don't think the Negaversers currently have anything to do with these phenomena, Mara. But, of course, you all know that I could be wrong about them. They've been known to cause strange things to happen in the past whenever we've had to deal with them before. Granted, we ourselves may have faced them in battle only a few times, at most, and at least once, in any case. But I don't currently think they might be responsible for the strange things that have been happening in this area of late."

"Then what might be causing them, in your opinion, Queen Serenity?" asked Princess Ginkya Rillis.

"I don't know, Ginkya. And I wish I did. That way, I might know what we'd have to do to keep them from continuing to happen, if they're not natural phenomena here in the Universe. Certain phenomena are natural, I'm sure, and some aren't. Those that aren't natural most likely have a cause relating at least partly, if not totally, to the presence of any number of sentient beings in this Universe, I believe."

That sparked a considerable amount of discussion among all the sentients now in the main dining hall of Crescent's Double Earth Palace. Whether those sentients were feline, human, or humanoid beings, it still did so. And it did so for at least an hour, if not longer. But it wasn't the only thing that they discussed while they all discussed their current situation in the Crescent area of the Moon.

Eventually, Serenity and all her companions decided they should probably patrol in the Crescent area of the Moon for a while, if they were able to do so. That was, of course, if they were Monitors and/or Scouts. That naturally excluded Luna and Artemis, however, for they were cats. And cats almost never were Scouts in the Moon Kingdom, if they'd ever been. No cat in the Moon Kingdom was actually a Scout. Or at least not as of the current time. But they often lived with girls who were actually Scouts in it, just the same.

Even before the beginning of the current Silver Millennium in the Moon Kingdom, it'd been very rare for a cat to be a Scout in it. To the best knowledge of the people of the Moon Kingdom, ever since the formation of the Sailor Scouts, only one cat in at least every forty million, maybe, had been a Scout of any kind, if that. Maybe even fewer cats than that in the Moon Kingdom had ever been Scouts of any kind. But nobody really knew for sure, beyond a reasonable shadow of a doubt, just how many cats in the Moon Kingdom had ever been Scouts of any kind. Or at least not at the current time in the Moon Kingdom, anyway.

Serenity and her current companions all left the Double Earth Palace's main dining hall in very short order. Even Luna and Artemis did so. But they didn't necessarily go with any of their human or humanoid associates when they left the main dining hall there for at least a little while. Serenity let Luna and Artemis do whatever they wanted to do, at least for a little while, if not longer than that, before she and the rest of her companions left the main dining hall there behind. Serenity and her remaining companions soon transformed themselves into each of their respective Scout states. Or for those that had at least two such states, into one of them, if not another one of them. Meaning at least Serenity, of course, if not anybody else as well in each of their own lives. Serenity, as a matter of fact, transformed herself into her own Royal Sailor Serenity state as a Scout. That was so she could patrol in the area of Crescent on the Moon with the rest of her current human or humanoid companions there, in very short order.

Eventually all the Moon Kingdom royals currently present on the Double Earth Palace's grounds had transformed into their respective Scout states, if they'd not already done so. And so had all of their Peruvian friends, also if they'd not already done so some length of time before the current time.

All the Scouts patrolled in the area of Crescent for a while. Nothing rather unexpected happened to any, or all, of them until just before they were about to return to the Double Earth Palace for a while. When they were about twenty or so minutes, at most, from reuniting with each other for the trip back to that Moon Kingdom palace, a very strange phenomenon that looked a great deal like a Terran tornado or hurricane began appearing in the sky quite near them. When they saw it, they all tried to keep themselves from being sucked into it. But none of them were able to do that well enough. They were all caught in that particular phenomenon. They were whisked into it. After they were, the phenomenon turned toward the Double Earth Palace. It eventually passed over that palace. When it did, it somehow managed to suck Luna and Artemis into it, as they tried hiding under at least a few bushes or trees. Then it turned away from the palace, after also sucking Luna and Artemis into it. It'd blown under those bushes or trees that Luna and Artemis had tried hiding under. But it'd not caused any damage at all to any of those bushes or trees anywhere in the Double Earth Palace's South Garden, quite strangely enough.

After it sucked Luna and Artemis into itself, it brought them both to where the Scouts were now in it, which was a globe-like container buried deep in the very core of itself. The Scouts were somewhat randomly spread out all over the inside of the globe, often in a state of near-weightlessness, if not in a state of total weightlessness. A few were in direct contact with the inside surface of the globe, while others were floating elsewhere in it. The inside of the globe contained a breathable enough atmosphere for all beings now within it, no matter what their place of origin was in the Sol System of the Universe's Milky Way Galaxy. No water was in the globe, and if they weren't in direct contact with the inside surface of the globe, they were either in contact with each other or with air. However, at least a few of the Scouts, if not all of them, either were asleep or were unconscious in it now. None of the Scouts were dead, which was quite fortunate for each of them and all the other beings in the globe. They'd know that soon enough, though, when the proper time came for them to learn it during their current adventure.

Moon was one of the Scouts who was now awake and sufficiently conscious, as were Royal Sailor Serenity, Mercury, and Jupiter, at least, if not anyone else as well, in the globe. When she realized that, Moon asked Royal Sailor Serenity, "Mom, what do you think's happening now?"

"I don't know yet, Moon. I wish I did, of course. But we'll just have to see where we'll end up, once this very strange phenomenon releases us wherever it chooses to do so, Moon."

As Moon talked with her mother, Mercury, and Jupiter, at least, if not any other Scouts as well, for a while, the strange vortex periodically traveled through time at least twice more, if not more. As it did so, it also briefly stopped at least once more before it finally released its captives in some other time and/or some other place besides their own respective times and/or places in God's very own Universe. It didn't drop off its various captives until it'd also briefly visited the 30th Century, if not also any other times and/or places, in that same Universe.

It'd gone to the 30th Century AD to grab Serena and Darien's potential future daughter Rini, at least, if not others as well. Then, after doing that, it reversed itself, and headed back in time at least once again, if not more. On the way to its final destination time and place, it somehow managed to grab several, if not all, of the most famous Sailor Scouts from the Moon Kingdom's past history, if they weren't from times and places that were even earlier than or later than the time and place it finally released all of its captives in. The time and place that it eventually deposited all of its captives in was the Second Century BC, somewhere around the time of the Moon Kingdom's founding, give or take a few months or years, at most, either way, most likely.

The time vortex eventually deposited them all in the year 174 BC, in the month of August. It deposited them there about two months after the founding of the Moon Kingdom, and just before the founding of the Sailor Scouts by the Moon Kingdom's rulers of that time in the Moon Kingdom's history.

After it deposited all of its captives in the Moon City area of that time, the time vortex soon vanished from their sights. When it did, all of its captives eventually saw each other again, if they'd not already done so by the time that it did that. Though most of them saw each other for a very brief time, before they all found themselves in the middle of several different groups of Scouts.

* * *

Okay, now that we're in the past, and many are now out of their proper time periods, how will their absences from them potentially affect this story series' timeline, and the future from this time on, folks? Will the history of the Moon Kingdom and/or other times change considerably or not? And if so, how might they do so, in truth? In order to find out the answers to those questions, you'll all just have to read on and find out.

And who the other Scouts are, and when and where they each were brought from in their lives, you'll have to keep reading to find out. Will they be able to work together to find some way that will allow them all to return to their proper time periods and places in history or not? Only time will tell, for sure, of course.

Until next time, then, I'll close this here. This adventure should hopefully provide a lot of fun times and all for many in this story. Or at least to some degree, anyway, it might do so, for some people in it, that is. But it won't necessarily be easy in many places for many, as well, of course, given the nature of certain things and/or beings in it, for that matter. TUS out.


	4. Chapter Four

Now that many of our characters are in the past, we will see how they begin to interact with each other and everyone else also brought to it, and deal with their sudden and unexpected time traveling bits here. They may not always recognize each other very easily, if at all, or at least not at first, anyway. But by the end of this adventure, hopefully they'll all have at least some memories of each other, once they all are finally back in their proper time periods, whatever they may be. Supposing they can have them later on, of course, that is.

In the meantime, though, they will have to survive it, of course, in order for that to potentially be the case for any or all of them later on. As I said in the summary to this story, this is going to be a wild and crazy adventure for many, folks. Please try to keep that in mind as you continue to read this story here, okay?

With no further ado, then, let's get back to the story now. I'll write more after this chapter's main text, as I often do, to give you at least a bit more information about what may or may not happen next in this story, at least. But until then, TUS out.

* * *

Outside The Future Crystal Palace's Future Walls

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 7, 174 BC

Moon quite soon afterward found herself in the midst of at least half a dozen other Scouts, including Sailors Calypso, Chrysalis, Bellasina, and Clarissa. Not to mention her potential future daughter Rini, who was dressed in much the same manner as she might be in the future, if not entirely in such a manner. Sailor Calypso asked who she was. And Moon said, "I'm Junior Sailor Moon. I'm actually from here, I think, but I really don't recognize where we are now."

"Junior Sailor Moon, we're in Moon City. What year do you think this is, however?" asked Sailor Calypso, after she introduced herself to Moon and any other Scout she was currently close enough to where the vortex had just deposited them all and others as well.

"AD 987?"

"No, it's not," answered Sailor Calypso.

"Then what year are we in, if you can tell us all, Sailor Calypso?"

"It seems to me that we're in 174 BC, if I judge the looks of things accurately enough here, Moon."

"Is this your time period, by any chance, then, Sailor Calypso?"

"No, it's not, if I'm right, Moon. I'm from sometime just after the start of the Silver Millennium."

"Have you seen Royal Sailor Serenity well enough by now, then, Sailor Calypso?" asked Moon.

"I don't know who she is, Moon. That particular name's not all that familiar to me. Or at least not right now, I think, Moon."

"She's my mother, Sailor Calypso. She has hair that's quite a different color than my own."

"What color is her hair, then, Moon?"

"Mostly white, if I remember correctly enough."

"Let me ask Sailor Chrysalis if I can help you look for her, then, Moon. Is that all right with you?"

"Sure. I don't mind, just so long as you don't take too long to do that, Sailor Calypso."

Then Sailor Calypso turned to another member of Moon's current group, and asked them, "Sailor Chrysalis, is it all right if I help Junior Sailor Moon look for her mother?"

A girl who was apparently about fifteen or so Terran years of age looked at Sailor Calypso, then answered, after conversing briefly with Sailors Bellasina and Clarissa, for they were apparently even older than she was, "Go ahead, if you want to. But try not to get too far away from here, just in case we have to meet up with each other again for any reason at all, Calypso."

"Understood. And what are you going to do, while I try to help Moon find her mother?"

"I'm going to go with Bellasina and Clarissa now, and try to see what might be going on here for us all as much as I can. If you can find Moon's mother, then please try to let me know as soon as you can, if at all possible, Sailor Calypso."

"Will do, Sailor Chrysalis."

Then Moon left her current area with Sailor Calypso and Super Sailor Mini Moon, at least, if not with anyone else as well in her current group. She'd eventually been deposited quite unexpectedly just outside the Crystal Palace's future walls with so many other Scouts from various times and places in the Moon Kingdom's own history. And with at least one from another time and place that might potentially exist somewhere and sometime in the Universe, as evidenced, quite obviously, by the current presence of Super Sailor Mini Moon. Moon asked Super Sailor Mini Moon, "Where'd you come from, if I may ask you this, Super Sailor Mini Moon?"

"I came from the 30th Century AD, Moon. You really look at least a bit like my mother. Are you sure that we've never actually met each other before in our lives?"

"I don't know. Why?"

"Because you seem to have her hairstyle, somehow, Moon."

"I see. Would you tell me more about your mother, then?"

"She has a husband named Darien."

"You wouldn't be kidding me?"

"No, of course not. Why do you ask?"

"Because I know a Darien, as a matter of fact."

"Is he tall and dark-haired, and does he often carry a cane?"

"As a matter of fact, he is, and he does."

"Are you married to him?"

"No, of course not. How old do you think I am?"

"You appear to be about eleven years or so old, I think."

"Yes, I am. But how can you tell?"

"Just a feeling, I guess. I sometimes get these strange feelings about people, just from looking at them a few times, at most. And Mars sometimes thinks that's quite weird back where I come from. She sometimes has dreams and visions about the past and the future in our Universe. But sometimes they're not as accurate as the ones that I have in my life."

"Did you say Mars, Mini Moon?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I've not seen her long enough since we just got here. I was with her when this vortex came and sucked us and others into it, and I've not seen her for a long enough time, after it dropped us here."

"You were?"

"Yes, I was. Hopefully I'll be able to find her later, then, Mini Moon. That's after we try to find my mother, of course."

Then Moon continued hunting for her mother with Calypso and Mini Moon, for at least a little while, if not a long while. It took her at least two hours after the vortex had deposited her and so many other Scouts in Moon City's local area, vintage August 174 BC, to do that. But eventually, she and they were somehow able to find Royal Sailor Serenity just outside what'd later be the Crystal Palace's northwestern corner.

Royal Sailor Serenity was with Sailor Peppermint, Luna, and Artemis, as well as with Junior Sailors Corona and Eclipse, when Moon, Calypso, and Mini Moon found her there. She saw Moon with Sailor Calypso and Super Sailor Mini Moon. She then asked Moon, "Are you all right, Moon?"

"Yes, Mother. I'm fine now. I see that Junior Sailors Corona and Eclipse are with you now. Where's everyone else?"

"I don't know yet, Moon. I've not seen them for a long enough period of time. I hope we'll meet up with them again later, of course, Moon."

"I've met up with Sailors Bellasina, Calypso, Chrysalis, and Clarissa, at least, as well as with Super Sailor Mini Moon. And I think a few others that I'm not yet all that familiar with in my life, if I'll somehow ever be familiar enough with them in it, as well."

"I see that you have Sailor Calypso with you now, Moon."

"Yes. And she seems to be a lot like we've thought she might have been in her life."

"I see, Moon. Well, maybe we can get to know her a bit better. For it seems that we might be here for at least a little while, quite possibly, if we're all not here forever."

"Maybe, Mother. But until then, how would you suggest we handle things, if at all possible?"

"I suppose we could play things by ear, of course, Moon."

"As you wish, Mother."

Just then, Corona said, "Mother, do you think that it'd be wise for us to power down now?"

"Why, Corona?"

"Because Eclipse and I would like to rest for a while in our normal states of being, if at all possible."

"I don't know yet, Corona. I don't know if it's safe enough to do so yet, as a matter of fact."

Just then, the current rulers of the Moon Kingdom passed by in a carriage of sorts. And they came upon several, if not all, of the Scouts now located on or near the future Crystal Palace's grounds in Moon City. One of them got out of the carriage shortly thereafter and came up to at least one of them, if not all of them. That ruler was the current Queen Eve of the Moon Kingdom, of course.

Queen Eve had seen all the Scouts in or near the future Crystal Palace's grounds. So she'd told the driver of her husband King Jason and her carriage to stop it as soon as possible. When Jason asked why, she said, "Because there are people that I don't seem to recognize near or on where we're going to be building our future Crystal Palace. I think I should see what their intentions are here, Jason."

"Very well. If you do this, though, please be very careful, my love."

"Of course I will be. I don't think that we'll have to worry about them causing us trouble, however. For you know that I control the Imperium Silver Crystal right now in our Moon Kingdom. If they're hostile, then I'm sure that my Crystal will tell me so soon enough."

"As you wish. I'll want to keep an eye on you, though, if you do this, my dear."

"Of course you will. But I don't think you'll have anything to fear with them, for some strange reason. Some of them seem at least a little familiar to me, also for some strange reason. I hope God will make it possible for me to learn why I'm thinking what I currently am thinking about them, Jason. But I won't badger Him into telling me why I'm thinking the way that I'm thinking about them now, just the same."

Then Queen Eve left her carriage for at least a little while, if not a long while. The first Scout she encountered was Super Sailor Rainbow, who was her future granddaughter Abigail. This granddaughter of hers would rule the Moon Kingdom in about fifty years, if nothing prevented her from doing so in the future. Super Sailor Rainbow appeared to be about seventeen or so Terran years of age, at the very least, as she appeared to her future grandmother Queen Eve. Queen Eve went to her, for she'd noticed first that she had what appeared to be at least a copy of her own Crystal. Which was actually the case, for all the Scouts that were now present, and who'd follow Queen Eve on one, if not the only one, of the thrones of the Moon Kingdom had at least copies of Queen Eve's own Crystal. That was if they didn't have the same ISC with them right now that Queen Eve wore on her neck in a hanging locket, of course.

It'd quite possibly likely take most, if not all, of the power in each of those crystals, at least, if not other crystals as well, to return everyone to their proper times and places in the Universe's history. That was why everyone was now here, or at least one of the reasons why they were here. Also they might need to be there to witness the founding of the Sailor Scouts in the year Terrans might reckon as 174 BC. But whether that was also the case, nobody now present yet knew, if they ever would. And they didn't yet know why all the Scouts with Imperium Silver Crystals, or at least copies of Queen Eve's Imperium Silver Crystal, were here, if they'd also eventually know that as well. The same was true for all other Scouts who were now present on or near the future Crystal Palace's grounds, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

But until they learned why they were all here at the current time in the Moon Kingdom's history, they'd have to do what they could to find out why they were, and what it'd take for them to all be able to return to their own times and places in it. Whether they might like it or not, they'd have to do that. No matter how much they might actually prefer to stay in this time and place in the Moon Kingdom's history, they'd have to do that.

When Queen Eve encountered Super Sailor Rainbow, she asked, "Who are you, and what are you all doing here on or near the future Crystal Palace's grounds?"

"I am Super Sailor Rainbow, and I really don't know exactly why we're all here in Moon City. This is Moon City, is it not?"

"Yes, it is, but how can you tell?"

"My grandmother told me once upon a time that near where the Crystal Palace will stand, if not on its future grounds, she met some strangers in or near Moon City. She told me that during her time as Queen of the Moon Kingdom, she met them in August of 174 BC. When she met them, plans were being made to build the Crystal Palace somewhere near the Imperial Palace in the Moon City local area. This place appears to not be as heavily populated as the Moon City of the time from which I come. This place appears to be a good deal more forested than the Moon City of my time, and you seem to be rather young, like in your early to middle thirties, at the very most, in your life. I notice that you have the Rose Shield of Nallisa hanging from your carriage's left side. And it appears to be in fairly good condition. That tells me that this time must be sometime in your early reign with King Jason Calumet. For if you'd ruled much longer as Queen of the Moon Kingdom, the shield might not be in as good a condition as it appears to be now. My grandmother told me once that it disappeared in a strange manner, for some yet-unknown reason, quite a few years after the time this appears to be. And in my time, it's not been seen by me or anyone else in my family for quite some time, if at all."

Queen Eve considered this, for at least a little while here, and then she asked her future granddaughter, "And do you think this is the time that your grandmother once told you about?"

"I believe that it very well could be. We might even be the strangers that she told me about once upon a time. And if so, then that may mean that you could be my grandmother, eventually. My grandmother was Queen Eve of the Moon Kingdom. And when she was somewhere between her twenties and her forties, she looked a lot, if not entirely, like you look now here in this place, in fact. I suppose that if that's true, you might even be my grandmother eventually. Though not for quite a while, of course. For if I remember at least one conversation I had with her, she won't have her first child until at least 170 BC, if not even later than that."

"I'm Queen Eve. And yes, I do rule the Moon Kingdom with King Jason Calumet. The Rose Shield of Nallisa is also on my carriage, as you've already said, Super Sailor Rainbow. So if I follow your logic through to a sufficient enough degree, you may be my future granddaughter. However, I don't know why she might ever be dressed the way you're dressed now, or why you seem to have at least a copy of my Imperium Silver Crystal, if not actually mine, with you here now, Super Sailor Rainbow."

"I'm from the future, and I was brought here by some strange phenomenon like a hurricane or tornado, if it wasn't like both, Queen Eve. I am the Super Sailor Scout Rainbow. And I am also, in my time, Queen Abigail of the Moon Kingdom. And supposedly, in my time, I will be the first Abigail to sit on a throne, if not the only throne, of the Moon Kingdom. But my time to rule is quite distant from this time. I predict that the two of you will rule for many years over the Moon Kingdom, until you are succeeded by me. For my parents will not rule the Moon Kingdom, at least partly due to your long ruling of it. I will succeed you when you two either abdicate or fall asleep, and then I will rule until I do the same. We will be the first three rulers of the Moon Kingdom, if my prediction is entirely correct, Queen Eve. Others will follow me, of course, for as long as the Moon Kingdom continues to exist. God willing, of course."

"And who are the Sailor Scouts, if I may ask you this, Super Sailor Rainbow?" asked Queen Eve.

"They will be a group of female warriors that will fight all enemies of the Moon Kingdom, whenever the need arises. Their group has not yet been founded, but it will be, if nothing and nobody at all keeps it from being founded. Many, if not all, of our future female descendants will become members of that group in their lives, I believe. Though I don't know how long they'll continue to be part of that group, I suspect very strongly that it will continue for a very long time after we fall asleep, and are buried somewhere in our Moon Kingdom, preferably somewhere on the Moon, of course."

"Do you know any one else here well enough, then, Super Sailor Rainbow, by any chance?"

"No, I can't say that I do, Queen Eve."

"Then maybe we should get acquainted with them, if we've not already done so."

"I suppose that'd be wise, Queen Eve."

Then Queen Eve motioned briefly to King Jason in her carriage. And that let him know he was to return to their Imperial Palace elsewhere in Moon City, at least long enough to leave the carriage there, and to pick up a large wagon there to bring all the Scouts and any cats that were now present back to the Imperial Palace for the rest of the day, at least, if not for a long time. He briefly nodded to her, and then called out to the carriage's driver to take him to the Imperial Palace as she'd asked him to do just now. Moments later, he was on his way to the Imperial Palace. When Queen Eve saw that he was, she had Super Sailor Rainbow follow her. Eventually, all the Scouts and cats who were present on or near the future Crystal Palace's grounds were all together in a group, no matter who they were. And they were all behind her, of course. Then she, those Scouts, and those cats waited patiently for King Jason to return with the necessary wagon.

About an hour after Queen Eve had motioned to her husband King Jason to get a large wagon from the Imperial Palace's grounds for their strange visitors, he returned with it. And he was controlling the horses that pulled it. For he'd left his carriage driver back at the Imperial Palace, as he was preparing the cart for use by their strange visitors. This wagon was large enough to hold at least fifty Scouts and/or cats, if not more, and it was being pulled by a team of a dozen horses, all completely under his physical and verbal control. The wagon was at least forty feet long, and eight feet wide, with sides that were four feet high from the wagon's bed area. And as already stated, the wagon was large enough to hold at least fifty Scouts and/or cats in it.

Queen Eve soon ordered her current companions into the wagon. And they all entered it as quickly and as calmly as they could. When everyone else was in it well enough to suit her, she went to where her husband was waiting to start up the team of horses again for the return trip to Moon City's Imperial Palace. That done, he then helped her into the driver's seat of the wagon, and she took a position to his right, while he stayed on the left. When she was settled enough on the seat in question, and said so to him, he started up the team, and made them set off again for Moon City's Imperial Palace, of course.

Some length of time later, King Jason and all of his current companions eventually arrived at the Imperial Palace. They came into the Imperial Palace's main courtyard. After they did, Jason and Eve eventually let their current companions exit the wagon. But they told those companions of theirs to stay near the wagon, at least until they could all be accounted for completely. After saying that, Jason and Eve soon descended from the driver's seat to the ground. It took at least a few minutes to account for all the Scouts and cats that'd been in the wagon, for Jason and Eve. After which, they assigned their visitors to various Imperial Palace quarters.

Scouts and cats were assigned to quarters in the palace somewhat randomly, whenever possible. But certain Scouts stayed together, once they made it sufficiently clear to Jason and Eve why they had to do that. Then all the Scouts and cats went to their assigned quarters in the Imperial Palace for at least a little while, if not a long while, of course.

Among those Scouts that stayed together when they went to their assigned Imperial Palace quarters were Corona and Eclipse, and they weren't the only ones to do so. This was because Royal Sailor Serenity went with Super Sailor Mini Moon, Sailor Peppermint, and Junior Sailor Moon to the same quarters in it as well, whether or not other Scouts besides them and Serenity's twins did the same.

Mercury ended up in quarters near Venus, Mars, and Jupiter, at least, if not also quarters near the Beta-level Scouts from Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. Those four Scouts ended up in quarters near each other and at least a few other Scouts, whether or not those Scouts also included Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus as well.

Sailors Bellasina and Clarissa ended up being assigned to adjoining Imperial Palace chambers, as did Sailors Calypso, Chrysalis, and the Moon-born Skyhorse. Near Calypso, Chrysalis, and Skyhorse's Imperial Palace quarters, there were some quarters assigned Sailor Scouts by the name of Twilight, Starhawk, and Nightwalker. Those Scouts, as a matter of fact, were much older versions of the three girls that Serenity had given birth to in late April of AD 987. Those three girls she'd given birth to in that year were Laura, Shari, and Rocío Moon. And these particular Sailor Scouts currently appeared to be about eight or so Terran years of age, at the very least, if not even older, after being sucked out of the late 20th Century or early 21st Century AD, about a millennium or so after the Moon Kingdom's expected end.

Apparently, Serenity would somehow be able to save them, when she had to sacrifice her Moon Kingdom to save as many of its own inhabitants from states of permanent death, due to the presence and the actions of the Moon Kingdom. It wasn't yet known whether or not Serenity would also be able to save Destiny and Bethany, of course. But it was now apparent, to at least some degree, that their mother would be able to save at least them and several members of Serena's current crowd, if not everyone at all from it. For why else would obviously much older versions of Laura, Shari, and Rocío currently be present in the Moon Kingdom's distant past?

After all the Scouts and any strange cats who were now present on the Imperial Palace's grounds had been assigned, and escorted, to quarters elsewhere in it, Queen Eve and her husband King Jason returned to their own chambers in it. Those chambers would eventually become Serenity's chambers, in due time. When they were alone again in those chambers, King Jason and Queen Eve spent most, if not all, of at least the next few hours alone with each other in them, doing and saying whatever came to mind for either or both of them in them. No matter what it was, they did so.

* * *

The next chapter will show at least several of the people now present here starting to get to know each other better, including Queen Serenity and her mother, for example. Even though Queen Serenity will look older than her mother does here, she will still recognize her at least a little, for sure.

To find out how well they start to get to know each other, you'll all just have to continue reading, and there's a lot more to tell yet, of this story's adventure. Until next time, however, I'll close this. TUS out.


	5. Chapter Five

In this chapter, we will see Queen Serenity spend time with her currently-future mother, Serena, and Rini for a while before they are summoned to the Imperial Palace's main ballroom, mainly. The four Moon ladies will begin getting to know each other at least a little bit better than they might already know each other in their respective lives, or might already know of them in those lives of theirs.

Seeing as Queen Serenity's mother has never yet managed to make it into her future, past the time of her death, if she ever will, she'll never have met Serena or her prospective daughter in any time period after then in her life before. So they will be quite unfamiliar to her in her life at this point. And, of course, she's not actually had Queen Serenity yet in it, seeing as she was taken out of time prior to being married to her husband and having Serenity and Raphael, at least,as well.

Serena has not married anyone yet, due to her current age, as well, obviously. But the fall of the Moon Kingdom has not yet happened, and all, even though it will eventually happen, unfortunately. It is increasingly unlikely that she'll ever be able to marry anyone by that time, as well. So it is quite unlikely that Rini will be among those who will be in existence somehow at that time, for that matter.

But a lot more is yet to happen here in this particular timeline before the Moon Kingdom ultimately falls, folks. So let's see what else happens here before it does, if we can, all right? Until later, then, TUS out.

* * *

Inside Serena's Future Imperial Palace Chambers

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 7, 174 BC

Meanwhile, as King Jason and Queen Eve were alone with each other in their descendant Serenity's future Imperial Palace chambers, four of their descendants were starting to get at least a bit more acquainted with each other, if they'd not already begun to do so. After those descendants of theirs began doing so, if they'd not already begun to do so some time before, Sailor Peppermint asked her fellow Scouts if they'd like to power down for at least a little while. For she'd thought that their Scout states were not their own respective normal states in their mortal lives. And she was right. Royal Sailor Serenity thought about the idea briefly, and then said to her mother, "Sure, Sailor Peppermint. I suppose that Moon, Mini Moon, and I could do that."

So Sailor Peppermint watched them do so for a few moments, before she too dropped out of her own Scout state as that. Moments later, Sailor Peppermint was just Princess Margaret Calumet again. That was because the time vortex had whisked her out of a time before she'd married Serenity's father in her life. That time had been before she'd ever married King Francis XII of the Moon Kingdom, and while she was Princess Margaret Calumet. She now appeared to be a young woman of about seventeen or so Terran years of age, at the very most, and at least thirteen such years of age, at the very least.

After she dropped out of her Scout state, she looked around at her current companions, and then asked Serenity, "How old are you, Queen Serenity?"

"When I was whisked out of my time, I was just over 42 years of age, Princess Margaret."

"Well, then, who are these two girls?"

"The blonde girl about eleven Terran years of age is my daughter Serena Moon. And the pink-haired girl that appears to be about five or so such years of age is, I believe, quite possibly her future daughter Serena Shields, who most people might call Rini in their own lives."

"I see. And I notice you're wearing what appears to be the Imperium Silver Crystal."

"Yes. I am wearing such a crystal. For in my time, I'm Queen of the Moon Kingdom. Unfortunately, I think I may be the last ruler of our Moon Kingdom, Princess Margaret."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because an evil force might someday ever come to the Moon Kingdom to try to destroy its own home world, which, of course, is the Moon, Princess Margaret. That's if enough people's visions and dreams of many years prove to be sufficiently accurate in their respective natures. In my time, I've ruled the Moon Kingdom for about twenty or so years, if my math is correct. I became Queen of it when my parents were killed quite suddenly with a lot of other people and cats."

"How were they killed, if I may ask you this, Queen Serenity?"

"Their spaceship was destroyed by the unexpected explosion of its hyperspace engines, as it was about to leave this solar system for another one elsewhere in the known Universe, Princess Margaret."

"I see. And how did you learn this?"

"Others told me, not long afterward, of their demises. Then I became the official ruler of our Moon Kingdom, as soon as I could become it in my life, Princess Margaret."

"And who's your husband, then?"

"You don't yet know him in your life, if you ever will. But you may know his mother, at least, if not also his father, by now in your life."

"Let me guess. You're from a time later than mine."

"Correct, Princess Margaret."

"Will I be around when you have your daughter Serena?"

"No, I'm afraid not."

"May I ask why, Queen Serenity?"

"Because you'll be asleep."

"Do you know why?"

"I know, but I don't think I can tell you here. Or not for a while, at least, Princess Margaret."

Serena Moon said, "I know why too, Princess Margaret, but I don't know if my mother really wants me to tell you right now either."

"That's right, Serena. And I'm not really sure if Rini actually knows yet what happened to her mother's maternal grandparents in their lives," said Queen Serenity.

"If I'm going to be her mother in the future, then I suspect that someday, I will tell her why. That's if she doesn't already know by the time that she was obviously whisked out of her own time by the strange phenomenon that brought us all here to the Moon City of 174 BC, Mother. I don't know if she knows yet, but I'd not be surprised if she does."

"Do you think I know why yet, Serena?"

"I don't know, Rini. You may very well be my future daughter, or you may not be. But if you are, then Queen Serenity may be your maternal grandmother, or she may not. I'm not yet sure, for I don't entirely know what the future might hold for me, of course."

"My mother seems to think that her mother lived in the late 10th Century AD, somewhere here on the Moon. And that after something bad happened to her then, she and a whole lot of others were sent roughly a millennium into the future from then, by her own mother. If that's so, then my mother's had at least two mothers, if not more, in her life. I think that maybe she's had three mothers by the time I come around for her and her husband, sometime in the future."

"I see. And this mother of yours, could she possibly be me?"

"I don't see why not, Serena. For we seem to share a common name, don't we?"

"I suppose so, Rini. But your friends and relatives normally call you Rini in your life, so that you know which Serena they're talking to, don't they?" asked Serena Moon.

"Of course they do, Serena. Raye often calls my mother 'Meatball Head' when she's acting particularly juvenile back where I come from."

"Raye Hino, if I remember correctly?"

"As a matter of fact, that's right, Serena."

"So she's actually around in the future?"

"Yes, it seems so. Mother and Raye often get into arguments with each other in their lives, when they're not otherwise occupied in them."

"Why am I not surprised to hear that?"

"I don't know, Serena."

For at least a while longer, then, the four of them conversed with each other, until they all got quite bored with doing so. When they were quite bored with doing so, they all soon found places to sleep in their recently-assigned chambers, and began napping not too long afterward. They all stayed asleep for quite a while, mainly due to their recent unexpected departures from their respective time periods, if not entirely due to them. Which then meant they all stayed asleep at least until Earthrise in the Moon City area of the Moon, if not even longer than that. At the very least, they all did so until local Earthrise on August 7, 174 BC, of course.

Several hours after they all fell asleep in their new chambers, they eventually began stirring in them. And after doing so, they soon woke up, if they'd not already done so. When they'd all done so, they checked their things that they had with them right now, to see if they had anything that they could change into for a while. All of them had at least one change of clothes in their things, fortunately, if not more. At least when it came to being out of their respective Scout states, whether or not they had only one such state of being in their lives, if not also while they were in such a state or states in them.

When they all confirmed that they had at least one change of clothes besides any Scout uniforms they might currently have available to them, they all eventually changed into one of them, if it wasn't their only change of clothes besides their Scout uniforms. They took turns changing into said clothes behind a curtain elsewhere in their current Imperial Palace chambers. For they all wanted their privacy while they did so. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, whenever they possibly could have it in such a situation, while they were all still here in the Moon City of 174 BC.

Shortly after they were all changed into other clothes for a while, they heard a few knocks on the door of their chambers. Princess Margaret was the first to speak of the four, when they heard the knocks. She asked, in quite a curious manner, "Who's there?"

"A maidservant of Queen Eve. Queen Eve would like you all to assemble as soon as possible in the main ballroom of the palace."

"Understood."

"Do you know where it is, by any chance?"

"I'm sure we can find it in your Imperial Palace." Princess Margaret didn't tell the maidservant why, for the maidservant didn't know why they might know where it was. She only knew that in the Imperial Palace, there were currently quite a few strangers that her King and Queen wanted to meet there. Even though she'd not yet seen any of them, because her King and Queen hadn't permitted her to see any of them yet, if they ever would. Of course, Princess Margaret, Queen Serenity, and Moon Princess Serena, at least, already knew where it was, even if Rini didn't. So they didn't tell the maidservant that they knew that, and why they knew that.

Moments later, the maidservant left the area of their chambers again. For she had other things that she still had to attend to at the current time. After she left, Rini asked, "Are you sure that you can bring me to the right place in this palace, you three?"

"I think so, Rini. It's been a while since we were all last here, but I think we can," answered Queen Serenity for herself, her currently-future mother, and her oldest daughter Serena.

"Who do you want me to walk with there, then, Queen Serenity?"

"I'd like you to walk with Serena, Rini. Do you have a problem with walking with her there?"

"I don't think so, Queen Serenity."

"Good. Then I'll walk with Princess Margaret, while you walk with Serena, Rini."

"Understood, Queen Serenity."

Then the four of them eventually left their assigned Imperial Palace chambers with each other. They did so with Queen Serenity and Princess Margaret leading both Serenas there, just in case they didn't actually know how to get there from their currently-assigned chambers in that palace. Actually, the older Serena did know the way there from where they'd been put in the palace, but the younger one didn't.

As they made their ways to the Imperial Palace's main ballroom, they met up with several of the other Scouts that'd also been brought to 174 BC just like they'd been, by the strange phenomenon that'd pulled them out of their respective time periods in history. That was if they didn't begin meeting up with all of those Scouts, and not just a few, some, or most of them instead, as they headed toward that part of Moon City's Imperial Palace. Among those people, of course, were Destiny and Bethany. Even though they all weren't currently in their Scout states as they came there as well.

Naturally, because Bethany and Destiny weren't in their respective Scout states, they were attached by a cord between their wrists, like they often were when they were with each other in their normal states of being in their lives. Bethany was slightly ahead of Destiny, guiding her to the necessary place in the Imperial Palace. And just ahead of Bethany, Amy and Raye were clearing a path for the twins to move among their fellow Moon Kingdom Princesses and Queens, if not also any number of cats, or other people, in their current crowd. And behind Bethany and Destiny in the group, Lita and Mina made sure that nobody would come up on the twins too quickly for their own good. They did this, as other people and cats also headed toward the main ballroom.

When Serena Moon saw Raye again, and was able to get close enough to her again, somehow, she asked, "Raye, do you know if Sylvia was one of the people taken out of her proper time period?"

"I haven't seen her. I don't think she's here, Serena. I suspect she's still back in Israel on Earth, and in our own time."

Just then, Rini saw Serena briefly conversing with Raye, then asked Serena, "How well do you know the girl you just talked to, Serena?"

"Very well, I'd like to think," answered Serena, when she turned slightly away from Raye to face toward Rini.

"Did you actually say 'Rini', Serena?" asked Raye.

"Yes, I did actually say that particular name, Raye. This little girl here is Rini Shields. Or at least a version of her that was brought back into this very same time period by the very same time vortex that evidently has brought all the rest of us here."

"I see, Serena. And if you're not too mistaken, then, Serena, this little girl will be the same one that we'll all probably know quite well someday yet in the future?"

"I think so, Raye. At least I hope so, though I may not know for sure yet, for all the obvious reasons, if she'll be around then somehow."

Then Serena managed to also talk to Amy, Lita, and Mina, at least, somehow, if not others as well besides them, her mother, and her maternal grandmother. Not to mention Rini as well. She could only converse briefly with them while they all continued to head toward the Imperial Palace's main ballroom. And only whenever her situation let her do so while heading to the necessary part of the palace with anyone else at all.

* * *

The next chapter will be short, but it will still help set up certain future events and interactions during the course of this story's adventure, in any case. And explain certain things that may play important parts in this story, as well.

The next several chapters may also be short, at least for another chapter or two, I think. But hopefully, that won't hurt the story's development too much, of course, before the first longer chapter to this story. We should now be about a fifth of the way through this story, as of the end of this chapter, for your information, folks. I'm expecting that there will be about twenty or so chapters to this story by the time I have it fully posted here. But I'm not sure just yet how many chapters there's going to be for this story here when it comes to a close, either.

There will be a lot of action here very soon, time-wise, but everyone now present is still getting to know each other at least a little here, having only recently been transferred from multiple times and places to the year 174 BC on the Moon. Once that happens well enough, things should really pick up a lot in this story for a lot of people, especially after they find themselves periodically being forced to fight strange beings later on in it.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. Hope you're enjoying the story so far, of course, folks. TUS out.


	6. Chapter Six

Here's another short chapter, but it will help to set up the rest of the story. There are three more short chapters after this one, before the real action starts to happen in it. These shorter chapters are needed to tie the out-of-time visitors together with each other and the current rulers of the Moon Kingdom in 174 BC before the real action begins.

And once it does, the out-of-time visitors will have a lot more action than they might expect in a very short period of time, for sure. Please bear with me a little longer, and you will see what I mean by that. And it will be wild and crazy, as well, and very challenging for them to deal with, as well.

With no further ado, then, I will give you the next chapter here. TUS out.

* * *

Main Ballroom In The Imperial Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 7, 174 BC

Some time later, they all arrived at the Imperial Palace's main ballroom area. When they got there, they saw King Jason and Queen Eve on two suitably-sized thrones there. And both rulers were surrounded by any number of other people in the room as well. Mainly people who were maidservants or menservants, of course, if some of them weren't either of those two things to the Moon Kingdom's rulers of this particular time in the Moon Kingdom's very own history.

When King Jason and Queen Eve knew they were all there, the rulers had their servants take up positions near them, but not in front of them, so that they could see their visitors from other time periods in history.

Then King Jason asked, "I see several of you hold at least copies of the Imperium Silver Crystal. May I ask why, if that's not too much for me to ask of you all who have crystals like that, if not actually that?"

That very group included at least six of the people now in front of him and his wife, if not more. After his and Queen Eve's time, and up to Queen Serenity's time, there'd be at least two dozen, if not more, girls and women that'd ever have sufficient control of the Imperium Silver Crystal for a long enough period of time in each of their lives, most likely. For they'd each be Queens of the Moon Kingdom when their times to be at least co-rulers, if not sole, rulers of the Moon Kingdom came to each of them in their lives.

The first of their current companions who were visiting 174 BC to speak was Queen Serenity, and she said, "That's right, King Jason. We each do have at least copies of the Imperium Silver Crystal, if not the actual Imperium Silver Crystal, on our persons. That's if we have such crystals in our possession, of course. As to why at least five of us do have them, besides your wife Queen Eve and me, I'm not quite sure. Or at least not yet, I'm not sure why we do here."

"Do you have an idea why you all might have them on your persons, Queen Serenity?"

"No, to tell you the truth, I really don't, King Jason. I just know that we do have them on our persons, among those of us that have them there. I also know that we don't all have them on our persons. For I know that certain people in our group here aren't normally able to possess them in their lives, for reasons likely too numerous to mention to you both in sufficient enough degree to suit you both enough in your own lives. And I do know that I'm a Queen in our Moon Kingdom. Just not at this particular time in our Moon Kingdom's own history. For I'm not actually from this time period in it, King Jason."

"Then what time period do you come from in it?"

"I come from a time period about eleven or twelve centuries from now in the future. I suspect many of us come from times either before then or after it. But I'm not entirely sure right now here."

"I see. And what is it like in your time?"

"Quite hectic, if I can best describe it as such, King Jason."

"And I suppose you'll be Queen of our Moon Kingdom then."

"Yes. Unless, of course, something may happen while I'm here with so many other people and cats to prevent me from doing that, King Jason."

"Like maybe a time loop, Queen Serenity?"

"I don't know, at least not for sure, King Jason. Or at least I don't know for sure yet, if I will know while I at least am still here in this particular time period of our Moon Kingdom's own history."

"I understand that. Do you think that it might be permissible for us to call you a Princess instead of a Queen, at least while you're here with us, and whenever you're all in public with us?"

"For the obvious reasons, no doubt?"

"Yes, if that's not too much of a problem for any or all of the rest of you people, that's what I'm asking."

"May I consult with the rest of my companions at least briefly about that, before I answer your question, please, King Jason?"

"As you wish, Queen Serenity."

Queen Serenity consulted with the rest of her human and humanoid companions that she had to consult with for a while. And as she did so, King Jason and Queen Eve also conversed briefly with each other not too far away, but still inside the Imperial Palace's main ballroom in Moon City on the Moon. They talked quietly with each other as their visitors did the same as well amongst themselves for a long enough period of time. When Queen Serenity had done so for a long enough time, she let the current rulers of the Moon Kingdom know she'd done so to a sufficient enough degree, of course.

Not long after doing so, King Jason said, "Then that's how it should be, whenever the situation requires us to refer to each other as we've agreed to refer to each other in public. In private, however, we might call each other different things, whenever possible, of course."

"Fair enough, King Jason. In public, it's all right for you to refer to us as Princesses, whenever appropriate for each of us. But in private, and whenever possible at such times, you are to use our actual ranks, unless we agree to do otherwise, King Jason. True, we actually aren't from this particular time in history, for the most part, if not entirely. But we'll still want you to do that kind of thing with us, whenever you both possibly can, and whenever we're in private with you."

"Agreed. Is there anything else you all need to tell us both, at least at the current time, then?"

"No, I don't think so. But if we think of something that needs your attention or attentions to a sufficient enough degree, can we let you know as soon as we possibly can?"

"Of course, Princess Serenity. If there's nothing else that you all have to tell us right now, then I suppose that we can let you return to each of your respective chambers here in this palace, at least for a little while, anyway. If we need to talk to any or all of you again while you're all here, we'll let you know. In the meantime, you're all free to return to each of your current chambers in this palace of ours."

Moments later, then, King Jason and Queen Eve left the Imperial Palace's main ballroom. And they did so for at least a little while, if not a long while, setting off for another part of the palace's grounds. Once they'd done so for a long enough time, Queen Serenity had every single one of her current companions return to each of their assigned chambers for at least a little while, of course.

After Queen Serenity did that, Serena Moon soon returned to her currently-assigned chambers in the palace with Princess Margaret, her own mother, and Rini. After doing that, Serena eventually fell asleep for a while, once she'd gotten permission from her mother to do that, back in her own future Imperial Palace chambers.

* * *

Three more short chapters remain before the real action for this story begins. Hopefully they will help you all understand later events in this adventure better, once you've read the whole story out, folks.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	7. Chapter Seven

Here's another short chapter. It will tie more of the characters together, and reveal more of the history of the Moon Kingdom, although it will mainly be from times later than 174 BC, in truth. That's all I'll reveal about certain things before you read this chapter, though.

Until later, then, I'll close this. TUS out.

* * *

Inside Amy's Future Imperial Palace Chambers

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 7, 174 BC - August 8, 174 BC

Some length of time later, then, the Mercurian Princess Amy Anderson was in her future Imperial Palace chambers with at least one other future Moon Kingdom Princess, Queen, or cat, if not at least one of each. Most specifically, she was now with the Martian Princess Raye Hino and three once and future Moon Kingdom Queens. Those once and future Moon Kingdom Queens would be known, from the earliest time to the latest time, in terms of their times as Queens in it, as Queens Abigail II, Rebekah I, and Anne III. But when they each weren't yet Queens of the Moon Kingdom, they'd be known by three other names, of course. The future Queen Abigail II was in her normal non-Scout state of being near Amy as Princess Martina Calumet.

On one side of Amy, and facing the future Queen Abigail II, there sat in a chair the future Queen Rebekah I, who'd be Queen Abigail II's future daughter-in-law, but who was currently in her normal non-Scout state as Princess Andrea Edwards, a young girl who appeared to be about fourteen or so Terran years of age in her life. On the other side of Amy, then, there was the once and future Queen Anne III. And she'd later be the wife of the last King from the Moon Kingdom's House of Harmon, before their eldest daughter married the first King of the Moon Kingdom's House of Caranski.

That Moon Kingdom house was the one that Queen Serenity would be from in her life, and the one that she was already from in her life, even though she'd also been thrown back in time now, with so many others. Raye was now facing that future Queen of the Moon Kingdom, as she sat across from Amy and the future Queens Anne III and Rebekah I, while sitting to the right of the future Queen Abigail II. But the future Queen Anne III was currently in her normal non-Scout state as Princess Denise Munro, and she wasn't sitting too far away from any of the rest of the people in Amy's future Imperial Palace chambers.

Princess Amy soon asked her current companions that she wasn't familiar enough with, at the current time, about themselves, and from what period of time in the Moon Kingdom's history they each came from. Of course, she didn't have to do that for Raye. But she did have to do it for the rest of her current companions.

Princess Andrea Edwards said, "I'm Princess Andrea Edwards, and I'm from the very end of Queen Abigail II's reign in the Moon Kingdom. I'm from about 130 or so years from now, at the very least, I think. Maybe more, and maybe less. But at the current time, I'm not yet sure, for all the obvious reasons. And who are you with the hair that looks maybe a bit bluish at times here?"

"I'm Princess Amy Anderson. I'm from Mercury City, a long ways away from here, Princess Andrea."

"Where's that, Amy?"

"Not near here, I can tell you that for sure, Andrea."

"Could it be on Mercury, Amy?"

"What do you know of Mercury?"

"I see it sometimes in the lunar skies. When the Sun isn't too bright, and the Earth isn't, it seems that strange things can sometimes be seen either on its visible surface, or near it. Also, some people here on the Moon seem to think that there may be sentient life on other planets or moons in our solar system, Amy. I'm not sure if they're right, but at least some people seem to think that, at least in my time period. You don't seem to be anyone I've met before in my life, back in my time period, Amy."

"I'm not, Andrea. I'm from what you might consider a future time from your time period. And others now here in this time with us are from the same time period as I'm from in our Moon Kingdom's history."

"Like who, for instance?"

"Like Princess Raye Hino here, who's from Mars City, which is also quite far from here, I believe, Andrea." Amy introduced Raye to the rest of their companions, if she'd not already done so at all.

"I see," said Andrea. "And I suppose you two girls know each other quite well in your lives?"

"As a matter of fact, we do. And what's more, we're Sailor Scouts in our time period, Andrea."

"Is that so, Raye?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it is, Andrea," said Raye, after looking momentarily at Amy, for the obvious reasons.

"I'm a Scout too, Raye. I'm Sailor Cinnamon," commented Andrea, several seconds later.

Raye said, "We, as well as quite a few others, are Sailor Scouts back in the time period we come from."

"How many are in your group of Scouts?"

"Quite a few, if not at least a dozen or more, Andrea," answered Raye.

"You seem to be quite familiar with Queen Serenity," said Princess Denise Munro.

"Yes, we are, Princess Denise," stated Amy.

"I've noticed that she had what appeared to be at least a copy of Queen Eve's Imperium Silver Crystal, if she didn't actually have the real one, Amy."

"That's right, Princess Martina. She's from our time period in our Moon Kingdom's history. She's the Queen of the Moon Kingdom in our time period in it. And she leads the Sailor Scouts then as well. There are more Scouts than either Raye or I can think of at the moment around in our time period. But I don't know how long that'll continue to be the case back then. For we've encountered a very hostile force of beings not from our part of the known Universe. And they've given us at least a little trouble in the past. We don't know if we'll ever be able to hold them off for a long enough time to protect our Moon Kingdom and its inhabitants from harm caused by them. But back where we come from in our time period of the Moon Kingdom's history, we really hope that we can. They're very hostile, and they've been very hard to beat in battle whenever we've faced them before in our time period."

"I see," said Martina, who was also the Sailor Scout Jasmine. "Are these hostile beings often like monsters, by any chance at all, Amy?"

"As a matter of fact, they often are, I believe. Why do you ask?" asked Amy, a few seconds later.

"Because back in my time period, I've sometimes dreamed that people from our Moon Kingdom have found themselves in battle against very strange beings in their lives. You and Raye seem strangely familiar to me, as do a number of other people in our group of visiting royals and/or cats. I don't exactly know why. But I really hope that I can find out why, somehow, before any or all of us try at least once, if not more, to return to each of our respective time periods in our Moon Kingdom's own history."

"Who else seems at least a little familiar to you among us all, Martina?" asked Raye.

"Besides Queen Serenity, the others of us all who seem that to me, Princess Serena, Princess Mina, and Princess Lita do, at least, Raye," replied Martina, after she took a sip of some water in a tall glass.

The five Princesses talked with each other for a while longer, even after local midnight in the Moon City area of the Moon. But eventually, they all got bored to a sufficient enough degree with doing so, in Amy's future Imperial Palace chambers. So they all eventually left them for at least an hour, if not longer. They all went exploring nearby areas of the Imperial Palace's grounds as much as they could explore them with each other at the current time. And they all stayed quite close to each other as they all did so.

They all eventually came to the part of those grounds that'd later come to be known as the Hebron Garden on them, many long years into the future, like not long after Queen Serenity's own birth, perhaps. Certainly it'd not be called that until at least the time period of Queen Jolata's shared reign with her own husband, the future King David I, over the Moon Kingdom. That shared reign of King David I and Queen Jolata would occur from AD 50 to AD 67, after which King David I's younger brother Solomon and his wife Leah would rule for a time over the Moon Kingdom. At the very earliest, the garden would be first created by Queen Jolata, while she was still Queen of the Moon Kingdom. And at the latest, it'd be created during the reign of Queen Serenity over the Moon Kingdom, in any case at all.

They found several large stones there, and those stones were basically quite large, but not so large that they couldn't sit on top of them rather easily. At Martina's suggestion, they each soon climbed up or jumped up on top of one of those stones. The largest of the stones was about five feet in average diameter, and the smallest was about three feet in average diameter. When they were all sitting on top of the stones sufficiently well and sufficiently safely, Martina said, "This reminds me of an adventure I and several other Scouts from my time have had before. In my group of Scouts, who I'm also quite close to in my life whenever we're not acting as Scouts, there are six other Scouts. Besides me, of course. Three of them have black hair much like yours, at least as they wear it, Raye, while another has medium brown hair that falls to the middle of her back, a fifth Scout in my group has short blonde hair, and the last one in my group has mostly auburn hair with purple, silver, orange, and green streaks in it."

"Is that so, Martina?" asked Raye.

"Yes, it is. They all have hair like I've just told you about here. And we've practically known each other for most of our lives, if not all of them, Raye."

"I see. And who are these girls?"

"Sailors Bluebird, Bonsai, Celeste, Sparrow, Windchaser, and Zebra, Raye, is who they are. At least when we're being Scouts, of course."

"Have you seen any of them here since we all got here with so many others, Martina?"

"No, I haven't. But, of course, that doesn't mean that any or all of them aren't here. They could be here, and we might not yet know it, Raye. And if they are, they're probably near several of the other cats and people that have been brought here from various times in our Moon Kingdom's history," answered Martina.

The five girls or women soon enough afterward continued their current conversation past local midnight in the Moon City area, if they'd not already done so. And when they were tired of doing so, they eventually left Amy's chambers again, if they'd not been assigned to them as well. They did that so they could all get some sleep again, if they wanted or needed to sleep again for a long enough period of time. Of course, only Amy remained in the aforementioned chambers when their conversation with each other was over. Then, after everyone else left her Imperial Palace chambers, she soon retired to her bed again.

* * *

Next chapter will see older versions of three of Queen Serenity's children. Which three they are, you'll all just have to read on to find out, and they won't be from AD 987, either, in truth. So who are they going to be, and what will they be called, and what year or years will they be from?

I will reveal, however, that they all will be sisters of each other, whoever they are. Which three of Queen Serenity's daughters they are, you'll have to read on and find out.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	8. Chapter Eight

Now we will meet the three daughters for Queen Serenity that I mentioned in the ending notes for the last chapter here, folks. They will be caught up in the adventure as well, and their presences will help everyone survive what is to come later in the story, for sure.

With no further ado, here's the next chapter, then. TUS out.

* * *

Inside Sylvia's Future Imperial Palace Chambers

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 7, 174 BC

Meanwhile, as Amy and several other young females were meeting in Amy's future Imperial Palace chambers with each other for a while, in Sylvia Wakefield's future Imperial Palace chambers, the three girls who were also the Sailor Scouts Twilight, Starhawk, and Nightwalker were meeting with each other. And it was now just a few minutes after Amy and her current companions had begun meeting with each other as well, elsewhere in the Imperial Palace. It was now within an hour after King Jason and Queen Eve had eventually left the main ballroom behind for their very own chambers in that palace.

The girls now appeared to be a little older than Serena was now in her life, if not more than a few years older than her. At the very most, they all looked like they were fourteen or fifteen Terran years of age, most likely. Laura was the tallest of the three girls. And she had dark brown hair that normally looked almost black, but not quite black, in its nature. That hair of hers, when worn completely down and free, would normally fall to a point about two-thirds, at most, down her back from her shoulders. But normally, she would wear it in a ponytail whenever possible, or in braids with ribbons woven into them as well, if she didn't wear it in a ponytail in her life. Laura's favorite colors were blue, gold, and pine green. And she'd often wear them, whenever she could wear them in her life. But pine green was not one of the colors that she wore when she had to, or wanted to, wear her Scout uniform. She had to wear blue, gold, black, red, orange, and white on her uniform. Even if she didn't really like some of those colors much at all, if even a little bit at all. She had pins on each of her shoulders, just as several of the Scouts had on theirs, when she wore her uniform. Those particular pins were just like the symbol that would often appear on her forehead at times of great stress for her in her life. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons.

Laura was, in the time that she'd been taken from by the vortex, the Sailor Scout Twilight. And she was most likely from the late 20th or early 21st Centuries AD, as a matter of fact, as were her sisters Shari and Rocío. She came from there, just as her other two current companions had earlier done in the exact same way that she had done so. She and her sisters had come from the future, and they'd certainly come from no earlier than 1987, but most likely no earlier than 1991 or so, in any case at all.

Laura was near the door of Sylvia's future Imperial Palace chambers, and her two current companions were sitting on one bed facing her, waiting to see what she would say and do next while they were still with her there. Laura was sitting in a chair draped with a rug recently made by one of Queen Eve's maidservants, and she was holding a cup of pink lemonade in her left hand, as she sat in that chair. Laura had her right leg draped over the right armrest of the chair, and her left leg was hanging over the front of the chair. Currently, Laura was wearing a wreath of daisies and tulips, a mostly blue sweater, stonewashed black denim jeans, and pine green pumps laced with gold ribbons wherever possible. The wreath of daisies and tulips was on her head, just above her hairline, and about where her tiara might rest when she was in her Scout state as Sailor Twilight. Her right hand was currently resting on her right knee, as she faced her sisters.

As for Shari, she was almost as tall as Laura was, but not quite, for Laura was at least two inches taller, if not more. She now had hair of a rather deep shade of auburn, and it fell to just barely above her waist, at most. That was whenever it was completely down and free, of course. But normally, she'd wear it in two braids or in a moderately-sized bun. She often liked to ride horses, paint, or write in her life, whenever she could do one or more of those things in it. Her favorite colors were navy blue, white, and cardinal red, for sure, at least, if not also some shades of brown and/or green, in it. She was several hours younger than Laura, and a few hours, at most, older than Rocío, in it. Her symbol was at least a hawk's head with a star on it, if not an entire hawk's body with a star on it, and it'd at least sometimes appear during times of great stress for her in her life, if not all the time. She often liked to wear sundresses, sweaters, skirts, and sneakers whenever she could possibly wear them in her life. Weather and parents permitting, of course, for all the obvious reasons, in it. She wasn't much for swimming, however, unlike her younger sister Rocío. She was more the type of girl who preferred to curl up with a good book, ride horses, paint, garden, or write, whenever she had enough free time to do any or all of those things in her life. Occasionally, she had also been known to play a little chess in it, but not most of the time, for she wasn't the kind of girl who often wanted to play very complex games in her life, like chess could often be for people.

As for Rocío, she was often the most interested in doing water-related things in her life of the three girls who were now present in Sylvia's future Imperial Palace chambers. Whenever her current situation was suitable enough for her to do so, she could often be found either swimming or sailing, in her life by other people in it. When they did so, she was most commonly found sailing on lakes, rivers, or oceans near her home, if there were such bodies of water close enough to it in her life. When she couldn't sail, she could sometimes be found swimming at nearby athletic clubs close enough to her home to allow her to do so. Her favorite colors were turquoise, purple, orange, and black. She was also the most tanned of the three girls alone now with each other. As of the current time, though, in Sylvia's future Imperial Palace chambers, she was brushing out Shari's hair with a black walnut-handled brush, and she was wearing a mostly turquoise nightgown with some purple trim on it.

Laura said, "Rocío, I wonder what it's going to take to allow us all to get back home to our own time period."

"I don't know, Laura. And I wish I did. I miss being with Eduardo, and I wonder if he's missing me now. I promised that I'd try to meet him by seven pm at the local movie theater to see a just-released movie premiere there, and not long after I did so, you and several others asked me to meet you near school, for some strange things had just seemed to happen there. I came there, in my Scout uniform, of course, and met you there with Shari, while you two were also in your Scout uniforms. We investigated the area of our school for a while, then we were suddenly whisked away from our time period by the time vortex that has brought us all here to the past, Laura. But of course, you probably should already know all this by now, if I'm not too mistaken here."

"Perhaps you're right, Rocío. But sometimes, I get distracted by things, and that makes me forget things I might not otherwise forget. Like where I might have planned to meet up with Nathan whenever we date in our lives, for instance."

Shari asked, "Do you think that you'll ever marry Nathan someday or not, Laura?"

"I don't know, Shari. As you know, being a Scout can often make having a love life at least a bit more difficult. Don't you think that I'd rather prefer not to have to fight against any number of evil beings in my life, instead of having to fight them whenever they want to get after those of us who are Scouts and the beings we're all supposed to protect to the best of our respective abilities to do so in our lives?"

"I suppose so, Laura. Jason often wonders why I'm not always available to date him, and so do Anthony, Robin, and Dennis. I've not kissed any of them before, and I'm reasonably certain that they all don't yet know that I'm a Scout at certain times in my life. And I hope that if that's true, they all don't find out for quite a while."

"For the obvious reasons, Shari?"

"Of course that's what I mean, Laura." When Rocío tapped her on the shoulder, Shari rose from the bed, and she went over to where her things were piled elsewhere in those chambers. She rummaged in them, until she found a mostly navy blue nightgown for herself to wear. She took that nightgown out, and went in the bathroom area of Sylvia's future chambers, so that she could eventually change into it, of course. That was after she made absolutely sure that she had all the things she'd need while she was still in the bathroom, prior to her finally retiring for the night to her own designated sleeping area in those chambers.

While Shari was getting ready for bed, Laura and Rocío talked a bit more with each other. And while they did so, they mainly conversed about several of the other people they'd encountered since they'd been brought to the current time in the Moon Kingdom's history. That time, of course, was 174 BC, and they were now in the Moon City of that time on the Moon, because of the fact they'd been brought there rather unexpectedly with several other sentient beings by the time vortex now in question here.

Rocío said, "Sailor Chrysalis seems to be rather nice, from what I can tell of her at the current time, Laura. I wonder who she is whenever she's not in her Sailor Scout state of being. She seems to be at least a little familiar to me at the current time, for some yet-unknown reason. Also Sailor Peppermint seems to be rather interesting, if her hair is any indication at all. I wonder why her hair is like it is."

"You mean you wonder why her hair's the colors that it is, of course?" asked Laura, as she finished the rest of her pink lemonade.

"Yes, I do, Laura. You know I do. It's not every single day that you see people with hair that's not basically one color or shade, or whatever term is appropriate here, Laura. You don't see a lot of people with hair that isn't some shade of blonde, brown, black, or red, I think. Do you?"

"No, I guess not." As Laura said this, she rose from her chair, and left it. She brought her empty glass, which had just moments before contained at least some pink lemonade, over to a nearby table upon which sat an empty pitcher. Of course, that pitcher had contained pink lemonade, but due to the fact that all three of the girls had drunk all of the pink lemonade in question that had been in it, it was now quite empty. She set her now-empty glass next to that pitcher, and went over to where her things were in their currently-shared chambers. By the time that Shari left the bathroom of them minutes later, Laura had retrieved a nightgown and several items from her belongings in those chambers of theirs.

While Laura was getting ready for bed in the bathroom area of them, Shari and Rocío briefly conversed with each other, mainly about boys and men, as a matter of fact. That was if they didn't converse entirely about boys and men, of course. They were alone with each other again for only about ten minutes or so, before Laura returned to the main area of them, so that she could also get some sleep in them.

Minutes after Laura returned to the main part of them, only one light remained lit. That was because the three girls had just extinguished all the other lights in the required chambers, so they could hopefully each get at least six hours of sleep, if not more, during the current night.

* * *

One more short chapter remains before the real action begins. As a matter of fact, the next chapter will have one of the first balls ever in the history of the Moon Kingdom since its founding, if not the first one, and this one will be a private ball with only certain people allowed at it for certain very important reasons. This will probably tie into certain future events later on, but I haven't yet decided that in my planned timeline for this particular story series of mine here.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	9. Chapter Nine

Here is the chapter with the aforementioned ball in it. This should give everyone now present at least a little bit of entertainment before many of the people here find themselves in more unexpected places from the next chapter of this story. Though not all of them, of course, for obvious reasons.

With no further ado, then, here we go with the next chapter. TUS out.

* * *

Main Ballroom In The Imperial Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

August 23, 174 BC

A little over two weeks later, King Jason and Queen Eve hosted a rather private ball for their guests from the future for the first time, if they'd not already done so at least once. The only sentients that were definitely were invited to the ball, besides all the necessary servants and both rulers, were the rulers' current guests in the Moon City area. And so were at least an equal number of young men that weren't yet old enough for military service with the Moon Kingdom, if not more than that. Or several, if not a lot of, older men who were most likely too old to actively serve quite well in the Moon Kingdom's armed forces, as a matter of fact.

This ball began just after local Earthrise in the area of Moon City on the Moon, on August 23, 174 BC. No servants at the ball were going to play music or sing. For none of the servants at the ball would be royal musicians. That was because quite a few royal musicians had just been assigned to some temporary duty in the local militia within the last week or so, at most. However, Eve had learned that several members of Serena's overall group could play music, and sing, quite well in their lives, since they'd come to the Moon City of 174 BC. When she asked them all if any or all of them would be willing to provide some music and songs for everyone else at the ball, they all agreed to see what they could do for her and King Jason, at least, if not for anyone else at all.

As already stated, then, the ball began just after local Earthrise, on August 23, 174 BC. It began when Jason and Eve ordered that it should begin. By the time they did so, several of the Princesses from the future who were now present in the Moon City area of the Moon had begun playing music and singing. After first making sure that their instruments were quite ready to play music, or that their voices were ready to be used for singing.

Michelle Gallenski, for instance, had tuned a violin quite well while she was still preparing to provide music for everyone else at the ball. She'd found a violin that seemed to be of rather good, if not better than rather good, quality. And within five minutes of picking it up, she'd tuned it exactly as she wanted it to be tuned. Then she began, if she'd not already done so, to practice a bit on it. So that when it was actually time for her to play for everyone else in the Imperial Palace's main ballroom, she could do so quite well.

Amy Anderson took up a flute, an oboe, and a clarinet, in that order. And she tuned them, while Michelle was tuning, and practicing with, the violin she'd just picked up a while before. By the time that Michelle was done practicing with the violin now in question here, Amy had them all tuned the ways that she actually wanted them to be tuned. Then she checked out the nearest piano. And she did the same thing, as other Princesses who were now in their overall group worked with other instruments, such as drums, harps, lutes, and guitars, for instance, if not other instruments as well.

The Princess who was also Sailor Calypso took up an accordion, a harmonica, a bassoon, a saxophone, and a banjo, at least, if not any other instruments as well. And she tuned each of them, as Raye Hino also worked at least briefly with a guitar and a few of the songs that she'd written since the vortex had brought them to the past with so many other people and cats. That Princess was, actually, Princess Jolata Morris. And she really was from the First Century AD, as a matter of fact. She could play music of many different kinds. But especially music that was of the Calypso variety. Her Sailor Scout name came from her favorite kind of music, which was of the Calypso variety, of course. It wasn't quite like the music of that variety that might someday be played on Earth in the future. But it was enough like it that Terrans might someday recognize it as basically being that kind of music. Her music of that variety, however, would have more of a lunar feel to it, most likely, in her life. It might be influenced by other musical styles, whether of lunar origin or not, of course. But it'd still be basically of the Calypso variety, just the same. That kind of music wasn't the only music style she could play quite well, however. Because she could play music that might remind Terrans of a later time than her own, at least a little bit, of Terran Jazz, Terran Bluegrass, Terran R&B, and Terran Gospel, musical styles, if not entirely of each of them or all of them.

Eventually, by the time that Jason and Eve ordered that the ball should begin, all the Princesses who were going to play music were already beginning to do so. While Raye was singing, Amy and the other musicians were playing music that Raye had scored, at most, three days before, with all the needed instruments in mind. She'd scored them just after realizing that the other assembled Princess-rank musicians could actually play those instruments quite well. Of course, she was already at least somewhat familiar with Amy and Michelle, and their abilities to provide music, at least to some degree. But as for the others now in their larger group, she'd not yet known of their respective abilities to do the same. Or at least she'd not yet done so, before she heard them play from a considerable distance away from her chambers, even while they were in their own. After hearing them play, however, she soon decided to score music that they could play while she sang several of her newest songs. Then she scored them, of course, and waited for an opportunity to provide the music she'd just scored, to the necessary people. That opportunity came when Jason and Eve eventually invited Raye and the rest of her current overall group of visitors to a private ball in the main ballroom, of course.

While several of their fellow Princesses then either sang or played elsewhere in the main ballroom, Serena and several other people began dancing in it with each other. Including, of course, all of the young men that were now here at the party. Supposing that they were then somehow able to do that for any reason at all while they were there with Serena and everyone else in the main ballroom, quite naturally enough.

Even Serenity did a little dancing in the main ballroom with at least one of the males now in it, whenever she felt like doing so. And she often did so to please Serena, Destiny, and Bethany, if she could possibly did so. They often asked her to dance with several of the available males in the main ballroom. For they really wanted to make sure she still had at least a little fun while they were all stuck in the past of the Moon Kingdom's own history. Granted, they didn't want her to forget about their lives in their own time period. But they still wanted her to have at least a little fun while they were in the time period that they were all now in here on the Moon. Serenity only danced, though, every so often. For she still wasn't quite as young as she once used to be.

The majority of the dancing for the four aforementioned Moon ladies, meaning Serenity, Serena, Destiny, and Bethany, was done by the three younger Moon ladies. This was just because of the just-mentioned fact that had to do at least a bit with Serenity. And most of that dancing from those three Moon ladies was done by Serena, for the simple reasons being that she was both hearing and seeing. Unlike either Destiny or Bethany, who were either blind or deaf, as the case might be for them both, at the current time.

Serena often danced with young males that looked a lot like Darien, but not always. Sometimes, she danced with males that looked like younger versions of her dad. But if she did so, she didn't know that yet, if she ever would know that, in her life. That was because her dad hadn't really told her much about what he'd looked like when he was about Serena's current age. That was if he'd ever done so before in the slightest degree, of course. But as far as Serena could currently recall, he'd never told her that much about his own childhood, if anything at all about it.

While Serena danced with several males during the ball, all the other Princesses who weren't playing music or singing at the ball often did the same. But not necessarily as often as Serena continued to dance on the main ballroom's floor. Eventually, even the musicians and singers did get to dance a little bit. Though not always when music was being played or songs were being sung in the main ballroom. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, as one might logically expect at a ball like this.

The Princesses often conversed with each other and both of the Moon Kingdom's rulers as of the current time, whenever they could do so. But they didn't normally talk to their various dancing partners at the ball. For they didn't know how much they should generally converse with them, at least for the most part. Mainly because of the fact that they all really wanted to do what they could to make sure that each of them returned to their own proper time periods in the Moon Kingdom's own history someday, if it was ever possible for any or all of them to do just that in it.

Eventually, when enough people got tired of dancing in the main ballroom at the current time, Jason and Eve ended the ball. And they did so no less than ten or so minutes before local midnight in the Moon City area of the Moon. After they then did so, the main ballroom emptied out rather quickly, like within five or so minutes, at least for the most part. By the time that Jason and Eve left the main ballroom for their own chambers in the palace, the only people besides themselves who actually were still remaining in it were several of their servants. Those servants were now beginning to clean up any messes that the people at the ball had made during it, if they'd not already begun to do so, when Jason and Eve finally left the main ballroom behind for the rest of the local night.

* * *

Now that a lot of people have had some fun for a little while in this story, at least, it's just about time to get to the real adventure for it. That real adventure will begin in the next chapter. There will be at least two long chapters to follow in this story, if not more, in truth. What will happen for the Scouts? Where will they go? When will they go? Will they be able to return safely enough to their proper time periods in history, whenever those may be?

The answers to those questions lie further on in this story, of course. So you'll just have to read on to find them out, folks.

I did say buckle up, for it's going to be a wild and crazy adventure that we're going to see many people having here, after all. And I hope you find it rather exciting and enjoyable to see how the Scouts and their allies interact with each other, and how they try to deal with the things they'll have to deal with during this adventure of theirs, as well.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	10. Chapter Ten

Buckle up, for it's going to be a real wild and crazy and bumpy ride this chapter, folks. And many will find themselves in quite considerable danger in this chapter. Where and when will they go, and what will be the nature or natures of the danger they'll find themselves in during this chapter? Let's find out!

With no further ado, then, here comes the next chapter of this story! TUS out.

* * *

Somewhere Else In The Universe

Crystalion, Katrelomisian Empire, Tarokauni III

September 1, 174 BC - September 2, 174 BC

Some time later, Serenity and several other people borrowed some horses from the royal stables for at least a little while. This was mainly, if not entirely, because Serena and at least a few of the other Princesses that were now in her somewhat large group wanted to explore the area of Moon City for at least a few hours, if not at least half a day or more, of time there. It wasn't easy for Serenity and other members of her group to convince Jason and Eve to let them borrow those horses. But they all still somehow managed to do that, just the same. However, Jason and Eve reminded them that they'd naturally have to be very careful while exploring the local area, and being far enough away from the Imperial Palace. Serenity and the rest of the Princesses that would be going with her on that trip to do some exploring of the local area assured them that they'd try to be as careful as they could all be, while they were away from the Imperial Palace, of course. Then Jason and Eve finally let those members of Serenity's group who'd be borrowing their horses for at least a little while leave the immediate area of the Imperial Palace in Moon City. Though they naturally did so quite reluctantly, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

The Princesses that chose to accompany Serenity on the little excursion elsewhere in the Moon City area then numbered at least two dozen, if not more, most likely. Of course, those Princesses naturally included Serena and the rest of her most common training partners, with the obvious exception of Sylvia. For she'd not yet been sufficiently confirmed to have been whisked out of their own time period into the Moon City area of 174 BC by any of the Scouts from Serena's own time period. She could've been whisked out of the late 10th Century AD into the current time period. But if so, she'd not yet been found in it by any of the visiting people just mentioned here. As far as Serena and everyone else knew, though, she'd not been captured by the time vortex that'd recently brought the rest of them to the Moon City area of 174 BC.

Little did they all know here that they'd all find themselves suddenly whisked away from Moon City's local area. They'd find themselves being brought to yet another place that none of them had yet been to in their lives, but still within the current time period. The time period would stay the same, even if their locations didn't, at least while they were still on their excursion away from Moon City's Imperial Palace.

About four or so hours after all the members of Serenity's current traveling party left the Imperial Palace's grounds, then, a storm arose near where they were traveling in the Moon City area. Before they could keep themselves sufficiently away from it, then, the storm came their direction, and they were soon caught up in it. The storm was a lot like a Terran hurricane, but not entirely like one. And they were all caught up in it, before they could get away from it easily enough.

Once Serenity realized that they'd not likely be able to get out of it before it deposited them all wherever it chose to do so, she told all her current companions who could do so to try to transform themselves into their respective Scout states, if they could possibly do just that somehow. Granted, it might not get them all safely enough out of the storm, at least for the time being. But maybe if they all tried to transform themselves into their respective Scout states of being, they might all somehow survive being caught up in that storm. So everyone who could possibly try to do so then tried to do as Serenity had just told them all to do. Luna and Artemis couldn't transform themselves, of course, and neither could any other cats who were on the trip. But they were still riding with Serenity on her horse, and hanging in a double pouch that Serenity was wearing over her shoulders. They were hanging in that double pouch, and hanging on for dear life to straps inside it. They stayed inside it even as Serenity was double-transforming herself into her Sentinel Serenity state of being as a Scout.

As Serena Moon transformed herself into her Scout state as Junior Sailor Moon, she called out to Raye Hino, "I really hope that this thing doesn't drop us all in a place we'll all never somehow be able to get home from, Raye! I don't want to be away from home forever if I don't have to!"

Raye just barely was able to hear her friend Serena calling to her over an almost-deafening roar caused by the storm now taking them out of the Moon City area on the Moon, and bringing them to a yet-unknown location elsewhere in the Universe. She barely heard Serena calling as they both transformed into their respective Sailor Scout states of being in their own mortal lives. And she called, just as loudly, "I don't think that it will, Serena! For if it does, I think that we'll not have to worry about our enemies ever again, and we'll all find ourselves in the Celestial Palace forever! God willing, of course!"

As soon as Raye called that out to Serena, everyone began finding themselves in one of their respective Scout states, no matter what those states were in their own lives. Princess Amy became Junior Sailor Mercury, for instance. Princess Abigail became Super Sailor Rainbow, and at least ten other Princesses became Sailor Scouts of at least three different kinds, if not more.

The storm raged for at least ten minutes, if not more, as it brought its current captives to some yet-unknown location in the Universe. Eventually, though, it deposited them on a planet roughly about the size of Terra, and this planet was the third planet in an eight-planet solar system, somewhere else in the Universe.

This planet was a planet with no moons orbiting it. And it was in the Tarokauni solar system of a galaxy about 2.68 billion light-years from the Milky Way Galaxy. This system had only one inhabited world in it, and a massive shower of asteroids was heading toward it at speeds quite close to light-speed, if not over it. And if things weren't already bad enough for the inhabitants of that world in the Tarokauni solar system of the Sakori Galaxy, the system's star was quite rapidly expanding in size, prior to its eventual collapse and explosion. The star in question here was, as a matter of fact, already rapidly approaching the orbit of its first planet. And it was now within 240,000 miles of getting close enough to suck its first planet inside it easily enough. If it did so, that planet would, of course, be destroyed by the star, most likely, in very short order.

The inhabitants of the third planet were quite frantically trying to see what they could do to ensure that there were at least some survivors of their planet. They were doing so just in case it was also sucked into the star like they thought at least two other planets in the system would be, if the asteroids didn't eliminate all life on it first, before the star did so. But they weren't having much success in their attempts to do so. For their planet's people were still too divided in their plans to try to save as many of their planet's inhabitants as possible. If any at all, of course. In fact, it might be too late to save anybody at all from the planet. But nobody yet knew that well enough yet, for obvious reasons. They generally expected that the asteroids would start impacting on their world within six months, if not sooner. And that their star would suck their planet into itself within that length of time, if it could possibly do so at all soon enough. They didn't know what might happen first, if both did. But they did know that if either of them did, not many of their planet's inhabitants likely would somehow survive, if any of them somehow ever managed to do that, for any conceivable enough reason whatsoever.

When the storm deposited them on that planet, it deposited them in the capital city of one of the main nations on Tarokauni III. Specifically in the city of Crystalion, which was also the largest city of Tarokauni III's Katrelomisian Empire. When it did so, the skies above their heads were streaked with many different colors, with most of the streaks being bluish, greenish, or orangish in nature, mainly due to the changes that were taking place because of the expansion of Tarokauni elsewhere in the system. It was late in the day, local time. And Tarokauni appeared to be, at least, about the size of a very large pumpkin, if not even larger than that, to anyone who saw it well enough after they were deposited in that area by the aforementioned storm, and who talked about it to the rest of their current companions. It wasn't quite as bright as Sol often was in the lunar skies back on the Moon in the Milky Way Galaxy's own Sol system. But it was still at least a little bright, just the same. It currently had, mainly due to the many colored streaks that were currently in the skies above Crystalion, about four or so percent of the brightness that Sol normally might have for Terrans back in its solar system of the Milky Way Galaxy, at the very most. And it normally had an average brightness of about .0048 that of Sol's normal brightness for Terrans in its solar system, plus or minus about 24 hundredths of a percent, most likely.

When everyone realized, to a sufficient enough degree, that they were all safely enough deposited in their new location, Sentinel Serenity soon accounted for them all. It took her about ten or so minutes to do so, as Serena and others still with her made as sure as they possibly could that their horses wouldn't go crazy for at least a little while, if not a long while. As she accounted for them, she also accounted for their location on the planet they'd just been brought to by the storm, to the best of her ability to do so. She saw a considerable part of a mountain range within two statute miles of their current position. And it was basically in a southerly direction from that location. The first visible signs of the city's main area were about half a mile away, in a mostly easterly direction, but not entirely in that direction. The nearest sign to them was about a quarter of a mile, at most, directly west of their position, and it read, once translated by Sentinel Serenity's Imperium Silver Crystal from about 150 yards away, "You are now leaving Crystalion in the Katrelomisian Empire. We all hope you return rather soon, if you've ever been here before!" That sign was on a post about six feet high. And on the other side of the post was another sign, this one naturally welcoming visitors to Crystalion, for the obvious reasons, no doubt.

Then Sentinel Serenity had her fellow Scouts start looking around for places where they could spend the upcoming night, if the need arose for them to do so. She divided her group of Scouts up into groups of no more than seven at a time, but no less than four in each group, in any case whatsoever. She had Moon go with Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter in a mostly northeasterly direction. Which might eventually bring all five of them to the northern or northeastern outskirts of Crystalion, if they were able to get there easily enough. She reminded them to try to stay in regular contact with her while they were away from her, of course. They promised that they'd try to do so, for the obvious reasons, before they left to scout out the local area in the direction she'd told them all to go.

When Moon had asked why Corona and Eclipse couldn't accompany her and the rest of her group on their part of the patrol, Sentinel Serenity said, "I definitely require them for now, Moon, so that this particular location can remain at least a bit more secure, for at least the time being. I'll be staying behind here as well, at least for the time being, so that we can all return to the same place, if possible, sometime later on. I'll be staying here with Mini Moon, Corona, Eclipse, and Peppermint, at the very least, if not anyone else as well, of course. And quite possibly with Rainbow and Calypso as well. The horses will also stay here. I'll be coordinating things from here to the best of my ability to do so, if possible, Moon."

Moon said, moments later, and just before she left with Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus to patrol in a mainly northeasterly direction, "As you wish, Sentinel Serenity. I don't like it, but I won't argue with you about how we should use our people. Or at least not at this time."

"Good, Junior Sailor Moon. Now I think you five girls really do have to go now. May God watch over you all while you're all away from here. And may He bring you all quite safely back here, as well." Then Moon departed the area, for at least the time being, with Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, so that she and them could do as Sentinel Serenity wanted them all to do, if possible.

While Junior Sailor Moon and her companions went mainly in a northeasterly direction, Amilaram and three of her Monitors who were also Scouts went in a mainly northerly direction, toward what appeared to be a forest of some yet-unknown sort. Amilaram went there with Sierra, Paquasim, and Onziza. As Amilaram did so, Firehawk went with Enisangob, Sacala, and Ocabirama in a mostly southerly direction, which eventually would take them all basically in the direction of the nearby mountain range that Sentinel Serenity had just seen a while before, of course, if not through it.

Bamboo, Chrysalis, Cinnamon, Jasmine, and Skyhorse went in a mostly westerly direction, toward what appeared to be a river basin of some sort, when Sentinel Serenity told them to check out things in that general direction. Of course, the Skyhorse that was currently in question here was the Moon-born Skyhorse, for the Earth-born Skyhorse surely hadn't gone on the riding trip in the Moon City area of 174 BC back on the Moon.

That briefly left only Saturn Beta, Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, and Pluto Beta in the particular area of Crystalion where they'd just been deposited, besides, of course, the horses, the cats, and at least five other Scouts. And even they eventually left that area to scout out other nearby areas near that area, heading off in a mostly southeasterly direction. Which eventually brought them to a series of rolling hills, once they passed through a gully about forty feet wide and sixty feet deep, at its greatest extent. They went at least half a dozen miles within three hours of leaving the area where they'd earlier been deposited with quite a few other people, horses, and cats. When they got no more than eight miles away from there, they then began heading back. First over the hills currently in question, then back through the gully, they headed back to their departure location. They arrived back there within six hours of having left it for the time being.

By the time the Beta-level Scouts who were currently part of Sentinel Serenity's traveling party got back, all the other Scouts who'd left their arrival location temporarily had returned to that same place. Except for Firehawk's group of Monitors who were also Scouts, for they'd just been trapped by a thunderstorm while they were still in the aforementioned mountain range for a while. They were sort of pinned down in a cave by that thunderstorm, which periodically dropped what essentially might be considered to be sulfur or hydrochloric acid bombs within forty yards of the nearest opening of the cave that they were now pinned down in. And if that didn't really help them much at all, neither did strong winds that were now threatening to suck them out of the cave that they were now trapped in. It was taking a lot of their strengths to keep themselves from being sucked out of their current cave. But they were still somehow able to keep themselves from being sucked out of it.

Sentinel Serenity conversed with all her currently-present Scouts for a while, just before Corona, Eclipse, Peppermint, Skyhorse, and Chrysalis eventually volunteered to see what they could do, in order to get Firehawk and the rest of her group out of the predicament they were all currently finding themselves. Skyhorse most especially volunteered to be part of a possible rescue party. For she thought that she could help them all get there and back easily enough, and safely enough. After a few moments of consideration by Sentinel Serenity, then, Skyhorse was put in charge of the group that would first try to get Firehawk, Enisangob, Sacala, and Ocabirama out of their current situation. Chrysalis would be her first backup, then Peppermint would back her up, followed by Corona and Eclipse in that order.

Minutes later, the five aforementioned Scouts formed a circle with themselves, and they prepared to leave via teleport for the necessary location near where four of their fellow Scouts were currently pinned down by the thunderstorm. That done, they were soon teleporting, and they teleported to a location barely on the other side of the mountain that their fellow Scouts were currently hiding from the storm in. This was so that they wouldn't find themselves in the storm too soon, if at all possible, of course. They eventually reappeared to each other still in the joined circle formation they'd been in when they'd begun teleporting. They materialized about half a mountain, at most, away from where the others were currently pinned down in their present cave.

They soon began looking for shafts into the mountain that might allow them reasonably easy and reasonably safe access to the cave their fellow Scouts were now in. Of course, Skyhorse was still in charge, as they did so. After about an hour or two more had passed for them all, since they'd come to the necessary mountain, Chrysalis was the first of the five Scouts to find such a shaft elsewhere in that very mountain. After doing so, she notified the rest of her rescue party. She waited briefly for them to rejoin her, and when they did so, all five Scouts entered that shaft in very short order, not yet knowing what else or who else might be in it. The shaft was, at most, about six feet wide, in most, if not all, of the places that it ran inside the mountain. But they all were still able to use the shaft to get deeper inside the mountain, just the same.

It took them at least another hour for them to reach the location where the other four Scouts were currently pinned down. Or at least get within about a hundred yards or so of that place in the mountain, if they couldn't yet get all the way there, due to their path toward there currently being blocked to a significant enough degree. Like by a rockslide of sufficient size, for instance, perhaps. They soon gained at least verbal contact with the trapped Scouts. And they learned that Sacala and Ocabirama were getting colder and colder as time went on, from Firehawk and Enisangob. Even though they had a fire going quite intensely in the hopes of keeping all four of them warm enough in their current situation.

Skyhorse thought for a few moments, and she asked Chrysalis if she had any ideas about how they could evacuate their fellow Scouts from the predicament they were now in. Chrysalis thought for a few moments, as well, then said, "I think Peppermint and I can buy us some time to break through the blockage easily enough. We can use our powers to hold up the part of the mountain that's above our heads while you, Corona, and Eclipse break through the blockage and evacuate the others. If Peppermint and I work together, I think that we can hold up the necessary part of the mountain for about half an hour or so, at most. And certainly not more than about fifty minutes, in any case, I strongly believe. But if we try to do that, you'll have to do what you can to clear the blockage and evacuate our fellow Scouts from their current situation, before we can no longer hold up the rest of the mountain here."

Skyhorse thought about what Chrysalis had just proposed for about a minute or two, and then said, "Do it, Chrysalis. Do whatever you two have to do to hold up the mountain as long as you can. And we'll see what we can do about the other Scouts."

"Understood, Skyhorse." Then, within another minute or two, Chrysalis and Peppermint began supporting the part of the mountain that was now above all nine Scouts' heads, as Skyhorse, Corona, and Eclipse just as quickly went to work on the blockage between them and the other Scouts currently in question. A whole lot of large boulders were quite rapidly tossed behind them as quickly and as safely as the three of them could toss them out of their ways. Where necessary, Skyhorse even used picks and other items that could be used to excavate an area that required excavation, if she currently had them at her disposal. Presently, she had nothing that could be used to cause an explosion, at least not deliberately. So explosives, even of a primitive enough variety, were out of the question for her here. Because of that, she had to use picks and other excavating tools now at her disposal to help clear the blockage now in question. As she and the other two Scouts now with her worked as quickly and as safely as they could, the protection that Chrysalis and Peppermint also spread out through the tunnel that they were now making elsewhere in the mountain.

This spreading out of their protective zone would eventually make it harder for Chrysalis and Peppermint to hold up the rest of the mountain, for the obvious reasons, of course. But hopefully they'd be able to hold it long enough for all their fellow Scouts to get back to where they were, just before they left the inside of the mountain, before it was too late for them all. Chrysalis and Peppermint tried to stay in constant contact with Skyhorse, Corona, and Eclipse, at least, if not any other Scout at the same time. So that if they needed to, they could keep the mountain from collapsing too close to their current positions in it, or near it, of course.

Almost fourteen minutes after Chrysalis and Peppermint began holding up the upper part of the mountain, then, Skyhorse, Corona, and Eclipse broke through to the other Scouts' current cave. A minute later, then, Skyhorse was already kneeling near the barely-conscious Sacala and Ocabirama. She was asking them if they could stand up.

Ocabirama answered for both of them, "I don't think so, Skyhorse. I think that we're going to have to be carried out of here, at least for the time being."

"Understood. Firehawk, you take Sacala. Enisangob, you take Ocabirama. Corona, how much longer do Chrysalis and Peppermint really think that they can hold up the mountain's upper part?"

"Maybe twenty or so minutes, at most, Skyhorse."

"Then we'd better get away from here as quickly as we can. Corona and Eclipse, gather up everyone else's things, if you can. We're going to have to get out of here right now, I think."

Corona and Eclipse moved to the other Scouts' things, and stowed them on their backs. Then they followed their fellow Scouts down the tunnel they'd just made, moments before. They all hurried as quickly, and as safely, as they all could do so down that tunnel. Five minutes after they left the necessary cave elsewhere in the mountain, that part of the mountain began collapsing, as Chrysalis and Peppermint were withdrawing their support from that part of it. As they moved, Chrysalis and Peppermint withdrew more of their support from the part of the mountain that they were now holding up. It wasn't easy for them to do so, of course. But they were still somehow able to hold up the necessary areas of the mountain for a long enough time as their fellow Scouts moved toward them in it. Seconds after their fellow Scouts left an area of the mountain, they withdrew support from that area of it. But not too quickly did they do so, for all the obvious reasons. Only when their fellow Scouts were sufficiently clear of each area did they withdraw their support from each area of the mountain.

28 minutes after they began doing so, they were rejoined in their current area of the mountain by seven other Scouts. When that happened, Chrysalis soon told Skyhorse, Corona, and Eclipse that she and Peppermint probably wouldn't be able to carry all their things out of their current area. So Skyhorse quickly gathered all of Chrysalis and Peppermint's things up in a pile, and dropped all her things on it as well.

By now, Sacala was fully conscious again, as was Ocabirama, after they'd gotten far enough away from the storm that'd pinned them down with Firehawk and Enisangob in the now-collapsed cave. And they were no longer quite cold. For as they got further away from the storm in question, they began warming up again quite easily, until they'd all gotten back to their usual average body temperatures, whatever those temperatures might possibly be, in their respective lives.

When they were both confirmed to be fully conscious without even the tiniest shadow of a doubt, by Skyhorse, Sacala and Ocabirama had Corona and Eclipse drop their personal things on the still-growing pile of things as well. That done, Firehawk and Enisangob soon put their own things on the pile too. Then Corona and Eclipse did the same with their own personal belongings, if they'd not already done so by that time. As Corona and Eclipse dropped the last of their things on that pile, Chrysalis suddenly stated, "We're losing power. I estimate that we have, at most, about eighty seconds to upper part total collapse. We've got to get out of here now!"

Skyhorse had all nine Scouts form a circle around their things. And she had them join their hands. She only took a few seconds, at most, to notify Sentinel Serenity of their current situation. Then Serenity projected some of her own power to where they were, so that they'd have at least a few seconds, if not at least another minute, of more time for them to all get away from the mountain now in question. She projected that power by somehow sending it through her own Imperium Silver Crystal. And she sent enough power to support the mountain's upper part for at least a few more seconds, if not for at least another minute. That done, she had Skyhorse complete the required circle, so that Skyhorse and the rest of her current party could teleport out of the mountain and back to base camp. Thirty seconds later, Skyhorse and her current companions had left the mountain behind with their things. And they were still teleporting back to base camp.

As soon as they arrived there, they began materializing quite near Sentinel Serenity. When they were fully there, in all senses of the word, Sentinel Serenity eventually said, "Good job, girls. I'm glad to see that you're all safely back here, of course."

A little while later, then, if it hadn't already occurred in Crystalion's local area, local midnight arrived. As a matter of fact, it'd come to Crystalion's local area a few hours, at most, before the current time there. Eventually, Sentinel Serenity was sufficiently satisfied that all four of the members of Firehawk's recent scouting party were in reasonably good health after they'd been trapped for a while by a rather intense thunderstorm. Then she soon had all her current companions head toward the main part of Crystalion, no matter who they were, once that was actually true for her and them. For the obvious reasons, she had them all try to stay in their respective Scout states for as long as they could, as they all moved toward the main part of Crystalion.

After another twenty minutes had passed for them all, they all entered the main part of Crystalion, just as another storm was nearing them at the same time. They soon ran for cover, once it started dropping various kinds of precipitation near enough to them as they were entering Crystalion's main part. A farmer and his wife saw them all running away from the storm. And they came out to try to get them all under sufficient amounts of cover. Even though they'd never seen Sentinel Serenity and the rest of her current companions before, they still realized that Sentinel Serenity and all her current companions were strangers to at least some, if not all, of Crystalion's local area, somehow. Maybe because of the fact that some of them didn't have hair like several, if not all, of their current companions. Like Peppermint, for instance.

The farmer ran out to let Sentinel Serenity know where she and her companions should shelter the horses, while the farmer's wife ran out to lead everyone else to some significant cover as well. Sentinel Serenity and four other Scouts made their horses follow the farmer and themselves to an underground stable. While Sentinel Serenity and four of her Scouts did so, Sentinel Serenity put the rest of the Scouts under the temporary control of Sailor Skyhorse and the farmer's wife, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

Within another twenty minutes, then, all the horses were sufficiently safe, sufficiently fed, sufficiently watered, and sufficiently warm in the aforementioned underground stable. Once those things were all true for the horses, Sentinel Serenity and the other four Sailor Scouts that'd gotten the horses underground with the help of the farmer eventually rejoined the rest of their traveling party, of course.

About ten minutes after they did so, the farmer's wife asked Sentinel Serenity, "Where are you all from, if I may ask you this?"

"We're from a place many miles from here. It's a place you probably don't know of in your lives."

"I see," said the farmer's wife, a few moments later. "You don't seem to be quite familiar with this place."

"No, we're not. We were brought here by a strange storm."

"Do you know what kind of storm brought you all here?" asked the farmer, who soon introduced himself as Paritok, and his wife as Katara.

"No, we don't really know what kind of storm brought us here," answered Sentinel Serenity.

"But you do know you're not from here, Sentinel Serenity?"

"Yes, we do, Paritok. Do you have any idea why we're all here now?"

"Well, the Torrents seem to be quite strong of late. I don't really know why, but they are. I wonder if one of them brought you all here from wherever you came from to here." This was said by Paritok, of course.

Sentinel Serenity then thought about that for a few seconds, then asked, "These Torrents you speak of, Paritok, occur fairly often, don't they, by any chance at all?"

"Every so often, but they're not often quite as strong as they've been for at least a little while, Sentinel Serenity," answered Paritok, a few moments later.

"Do they often bring people to this area when they're quite strong, like it evidently seems you think that they could have done here?"

"Not really, Sentinel Serenity. They don't usually bring strangers here to the Crystalion area, at least, when they're quite strong in this part of our Empire. Occasionally, they might, but not really all that often."

Then Sentinel Serenity and the two natives of Tarokauni III conversed for a little while longer, or at least until Paritok said, "You all may spend at least the next few days working out of here, if you want. But I really don't know how long you'll all be able to do that. Because, within the next month or two, at most, it'll most likely start to get quite a bit colder than it has been around here of late."

"We don't want to stay here any longer than we have to, Paritok. For we have to get back to wherever we come from, before it's too late for us to do so, if we possibly can get back there in time."

"Time's short for you all?" asked Katara.

"It may very well be, but we don't yet know that for sure here. We have things we have to do back home. But home is a long way away from here, as far as we can currently tell in each of our lives."

Eventually, Paritok and Katara escorted their guests to several rooms both underground and not underground. Then they left their guests to their own devices, once they were sufficiently sure that their guests knew well enough how things worked in their residence, which was built into the side of a small hill, at least partly, if not entirely. Soon enough, then, each of the Scouts now present there periodically dropped out of their respective Sailor Scout states, as of the current time, so that they could all take turns sleeping in shifts. Not all of them dropped out of those states at the same time, of course, and not all of them stayed in them all the time. All the Sailor Scouts then slept in shifts of no longer than three hours, and no less than two hours, at a time. And the last of them only rose from where they'd just slept about five minutes after local dawn in the Crystalion local area, at the very earliest. And they certainly did that within fifteen minutes of that time, in any case whatsoever. By the time that Katara eventually came to their various rooms in the residence, then, they were all back in one of their respective Scout states, if not their only one. That was so she'd not know of their normal identity or identities while they weren't actually in those states of being in their respective lives, quite naturally enough.

Two hours later, they were already on their horses, and riding to the nearest castle-like building, under highly clear skies mainly covered by orangish or reddish streaks where purplish clouds weren't generally present in them. They were advised to take the main street to that building by their hosts, and to not waste any unnecessary time in doing so. For if they did, they might run into any number of often rather fierce bandits from at least one rather infamous robber bands that mainly operated within five days' distance of Crystalion in the Katrelomisian Empire of Tarokauni III. Of course, as they rode their horses, they all made quite sure that they were each in one of their respective Scout states, if not their only one, if they could possibly be in any of them at all.

They rode until they came to the drawbridge of that building, after which Sentinel Serenity soon called out to the castle's guards in their towers, and told them that they'd been sent there by friends of the Empire's rulers. Some time later, then, the drawbridge was lowered, so that they could enter the castle now in question here.

After they entered the castle, the Scouts, with the exception of Calypso and Chrysalis, who were left temporarily in charge of their horses and all their current feline companions, were all soon escorted to the throne room of the Empire's Emperor and Empress, who were Emperor Yokatuki and Empress Ashihaki. The Emperor and Empress conversed with their new guests for about two or three hours, before they had the Scouts and their companions escorted out of the aforementioned throne room and the castle. But not without first giving them all a map to another nearby part of the Empire, which might not take them more than a week or two to get to, if everything went sufficiently according to plan for them in the meantime, of course. This map could very well lead them to unexpected treasures or to unexpected dangers. But only time would tell which it would be, if it wasn't both. Before the Scouts left the area of the aforementioned castle, though, the Emperor and Empress made as sure as they could that they'd have enough supplies to last them for at least a week, if not longer, as they all then traveled to that nearby part of the Empire. The Scouts checked in briefly with Paritok and Katara, before they left the Crystalion area of the Empire behind, for at least the time being, if not forever. Then they eventually left it behind again, so that they could see where that map might bring them all, and what it might bring them all, while they were using it to see what it could possibly bring them all.

* * *

Oh, boy, another alien world for a number of the Scouts now present, but probably the first for many of them as well. What will the rest of the story hold in store for everyone now far from the Moon of any time period, then? Let's see if you can guess, folks.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	11. Chapter Eleven

This next chapter may be the longest chapter in this volume, but a lot of things will happen in it, and more history related to the cultural, social, and political development for those on the Moon since it was first settled and populated ages ago in its known history will likely be revealed in it as well. Not to mention at least some of the history of the Imperium Silver Crystal, at least since its discovery and all. Along with some predictions related to later events in this story and the applicable timeline or timelines that may arise after 174 BC on the Moon, for that matter.

With no further ado, then, I'll present you with the next chapter of this story here. Please try and remember to stay buckled up, folks. For there's quite a bit of action in this chapter, and there will be at least one more action-filled chapter to come in this story as well, for sure, before it ultimately comes to an end later on, whenever and however it does. TUS out.

* * *

Somewhere In The Tokariano Mountains

September 9, 174 BC

Taturaki, Katrelomisian Empire, Tarokauni III

About a week later, then, and about two hours past local dawn, the Scouts all arrived at a location that was quite clearly marked with a small hunter green star in the middle of their map's southern edge. They found themselves almost halfway through the Tokariano Mountains. Which was a mountain range that was about fifty to seventy Terran statute miles north of Crystalion's centermost part. And a gently winding river was just about 4,000 feet to their east as they all went mainly in a northerly direction, as a matter of fact.

That river was the Tatukoni River, and it ran through the area covered by the map in question, until it was about halfway through it, if not a little more through it. It stopped running when it reached a lake called Lake Kenokoa. And that lake was about half the size of Lake Superior back on Terra in the Milky Way Galaxy's Sol solar system, at most. That lake, on the map, had an appropriately-sized cobalt blue X not far from the middle of its western shore. That X was where all the Scouts would ultimately have to end up by the time they were done traveling in the immediate area near that lake.

They didn't stay at the southern edge of the area covered by their map for long, before they moved to the first place marked on it with a turquoise diamond. That place brought them to a town called Taturaki, or at least quite near it, like within five miles of it, maybe. They soon came upon an old mining shaft, in a nearby mountain, as a storm was blowing into their current area. So they entered that shaft, in order to keep out of the storm in question then for as long as they possibly could.

As they were in that mining shaft, they soon found several underground tunnels, quite possibly leading to places they didn't yet know of well enough, of course. They eventually chose one at random, then went down it. As they did so, several torches periodically flickered to life, which often made it at least a bit easier for the Scouts and all their current companions to see through, and move through, the tunnel they'd chosen to use for at least the time being, if not all the time. Also, when the aforementioned torches periodically flickered to life, the Scouts sometimes saw things that they might possibly be able to use, if they could somehow gain sufficient enough control over them. Like crystals, quite possibly.

Moon asked Sentinel Serenity if she thought that they might be able to use those things in the future, and Sentinel Serenity said, "Maybe, Moon, but I really don't know yet if it'd actually be very wise for us to try to get them from here. If we tried to get them from inside the walls of this tunnel, it might make this mountain collapse on top of us all. For I seem to detect a growing fracture in the rock about 8,400 feet above our heads, and I fear that if we try to access those things in the walls too soon, it might make the top of the mountain break away and slide down one side of the mountain, if not more, Moon. And I really don't think that you really want us to be responsible for such an occurrence, if it can possibly be avoided at all by us, Moon."

"No, I don't, of course, but several of the things here seem to be among the things I believe that we're now looking for, just the same, Sentinel Serenity," said Junior Sailor Moon.

"I disagree, Moon. And because I do so, we're not going to take any chances with our safeties here. True, things we might be looking for may actually be here, but I don't believe that it'd be wise for us to possibly risk our safeties by searching here, Moon. Or at least not at this time, if I ever will change my mind about us searching here, which I really don't think I'll do sometime later on here."

"As you wish, Sentinel Serenity."

Then Sentinel Serenity continued to lead her current companions down the tunnel they'd just chosen to move down a while before. She did so for at least a little while, before she chose to let them stop moving for a few minutes, if they wanted to do that then. As they were all still quite deep within the mountain they were all currently in together. When she chose to let them then do that for at least a few minutes, she first made sure that it was quite safe for them all to do so, of course, for all the obvious reasons.

Once she did so, Mars and Mercury, at least, soon had a fire going in the place where Sentinel Serenity had let them and all of their current companions stop moving for a while. This fire had an average diameter of about ten feet, in the middle of a nook in an underground cavern, deep inside the mountain that they were all now in. And it was large enough to provide at least some warmth and/or light from that fire in that nook of the aforementioned underground cavern, as a matter of fact. Mars used a little bit of her ability to provide fire to get that fire started, while Mercury and others made sure that it wouldn't leave the area of the nook that it was now in. Mercury and others did this by forming a circle of the necessary size out of several considerably-sized rocks. And most of those rocks were of a height that would be about knee-height for Sentinel Serenity in her life, as a matter of fact, if all of them weren't at least that height or even larger. A few of the Scouts provided burnable items, such as nearby twigs or leaves, or whatever else they could find to burn affordably enough for a long enough time. Of course, they didn't toss any of their things into the fire then. And they wouldn't do so unless they were ever forced to do just that while they were still in the fire's nook.

While the fire was raging for a while, in the aforementioned nook, Sentinel Serenity also let those Scouts of hers who were sufficiently hungry and thirsty get a little bit of food and/or drink for themselves, of course. This was for all the obvious reasons, quite naturally, while they were still there in that nook.

Eventually, while all the hungry and/or thirsty Scouts were eating and/or drinking the necessary things there, Bamboo asked, "Does anyone here want to hear a story from me, while we're all here for a while?"

"What kind of story do you propose to tell us, Bamboo?" asked Sentinel Serenity.

"A story I was working on when I got caught up in the phenomenon that brought us all to the Moon City of 174 BC, Sentinel Serenity. It's a story set in the Second Millennium BC, long before that time, as a matter of fact. I think that such a story might be safe for me to tell to you all, considering the fact that we're not all from the same time period in our Moon Kingdom's own history."

"True enough, I suppose. If you feel that we should hear it, then, feel free to tell us at least some of it, if not all of it, Bamboo."

Bamboo reached into a sack she currently had near her, and took a scroll out of it. After doing that, she checked the outside of the scroll in the available light, to make sure she'd taken the right one out of her sack. Seeing that she had, she reached back into her sack. And she soon withdrew a deerskin that had an available area of roughly sixteen square feet, with the deerskin being four feet long, four feet wide, and six inches thick, if it'd be fully spread out over a table or on a floor or on the ground. Then, with some help from Chrysalis and Calypso, she spread out that deerskin on the ground near herself. Chrysalis put two small rocks on two corners of the now-spread deerskin, and Calypso did the same for the other two necessary corners of it. Then Bamboo untied the ribbon holding the scroll together, and she placed the scroll on the deerskin, near her left knee. After doing that, she then rolled the scroll out to her right, so that she could read from it, of course.

After she'd done so enough to allow her to start telling her story, and after everyone was ready for her to do just that, she soon said, "This is a story of ancient people. Even for those of you who are from the last two centuries BC, in our Moon Kingdom's own history, that's still true here. The time is the middle of the Second Millennium BC, and the place is near where Moon City once was, now is, and will be, people. That is if it's not in that very same place, as a matter of actual fact. I say this because of the simple fact that we're not all from the same time period in the Universe's history, if not also from the Moon Kingdom's very own history in it."

"Do you want someone else here to write this story down, just in case we ever return to each of our own time periods, Bamboo?" asked Mercury, who was now quite curious about what Bamboo might think about such a thing here. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons.

"I suppose that I could permit it. But because we're not all from the same time period, would it be very wise for me to do that here? I don't really know here if it would be, Mercury."

"But you said this story might be safe enough for you to tell all of us it. If so, why don't you think that we should write this story down too?" asked Mercury of Bamboo.

"Because I just don't think so, Mercury. Besides, if we each took a copy of it back to each of our time periods, then our enemies in them might be able to find out at least one way to beat us in battle. Especially if you and others from your own time period did that, if I'm not too mistaken about certain predictions that relate to future events, at least from my period in time. You do have a present enemy, I believe, in your own time period, right, Mercury?"

"Yes, I suppose that's true. I don't think that it might be a very good idea to bring back copies of this story you might tell us, at least not in a visible enough form, come to think of it. All right, then, Bamboo. How do you suggest we somehow remember the story, if and when the need ever arises for us to do so, at any time in the future, then, Bamboo?"

"I think that we'll each have to try to remember it to the best of our respective abilities to do so, if and when we ever return to each of our respective time periods, Mercury. But I don't think that we can risk having copies of this story I might tell you all here written out for at least one or two millennia from now, at the very earliest. I could be wrong, of course, but I don't really think that I am here."

"I suppose you might be right, Bamboo."

Bamboo soon nodded at Mercury. just before she began telling her tale. "Long ago, before the days of the Moon Kingdom ever began, there were many people in and around the Moon City area. The days were in a time at least a century or two, if not at least three or four, before the first actual nation-states ever appeared anywhere on the Moon's surface. The Imperium Silver Crystal wasn't yet mined from its actual place of origin, and the Crescent Moon Wand hadn't yet appeared, at such a time. But around this time, the people who'd eventually found the nation that would in time come to rule our entire world were born, if they'd not already been born by then. And we're all descended, as far as I know, from those people. Of course, I could be wrong, for all the obvious reasons. But I don't really know if I'm wrong or not here, just the same."

As she paused briefly, Chrysalis brought a bowl of chicken noodle soup over to her here, so that she could have something more to eat as she told her story. As Chrysalis brought the soup over to her, Cinnamon also provided some oolong tea mixed with just a touch of cinnamon in it. Then Bamboo continued her tale.

She said, "These people were born in the year you might call 1503 BC, and my story begins a few years later. It was in the days of Gormak Chalinok, who then ruled over what we all know is the Moon City area. Or at least for those of us who are from anywhere on the Moon at all, of course. This was during the great age of the city-states, at least. Crescent was not part of his domain, at this time, if it ever would be. But he is not who we're all descended from. We're all descended from other people in his domain of that time, if I'm not too mistaken here. He was quite old at this time, and he had only about five or ten more years, at most, to rule over his domain. He had no heirs. At least not any longer, for when he came to the throne in a civil war of sorts, all his children and his wife were killed by those opposing him in that civil war. That civil war occurred when the previous ruler also died without naming their successor, or having any heirs to the throne around. He was not a wise king, and he'd held onto power for many years in quite negative ways. After he'd finally die, another contest for the throne of his domain would happen. But as of the time of my story, he was still ruler of what we now know as Moon City's local area."

She paused just long enough to have some of her soup and tea, and then continued to tell her tale. "At this time, another group of people began gaining influence and power in his domain, by getting themselves elected to the city's council. It's from several members of this group that we're all descended from, as far as I know here. And at least one, if not more than one, of those people also had ties to the city's military forces. From this group, the next ruler would come, and their line would last at least until the founding of the first actual nation-state on the Moon's surface, if not longer. That future ruler and his wife now had a few children of their own. With at least one of which we know for sure that we're descended from, I believe. If not more than one of them, people, if I'm not too mistaken here. Their oldest child, for example, was a son. And with the help of at least one child of other members of that group, they'd eventually find the Imperium Silver Crystal sometime in their lives, whether it was still while they were children or not."

She looked at all of her current companions for a somewhat long moment, and then continued to speak. "This oldest child of the future ruler was about three or four Terran years of age, at the very most. And his name was Obarok. He had one sibling, a newborn sister, as of that time. But he'd have others, in time, God willing. Obarok was already quite inquisitive in his life, as he'd often run all over the place whenever he could, either in his house or near it. He'd often try to investigate everything he saw or encountered. No matter what it was. Even if it might normally be quite harmful to most people or most animals in its very own existence. But whenever he did so, no harm would come to him for some reason. That reason, I will share with you when the proper time comes. But that time has not yet come in this story, everyone. At this time, he'd not yet met his future wives. Yes, wives, for their society still hadn't adopted the practice of one spouse per adult member, and it wouldn't do so for some time after his own time. At the current time, the practice of multiple marriages was required by the conditions that their society then faced, and would still face for at least a century or two after his time period."

After having more soup and tea, she continued, "But not long afterward, he'd meet at least one or two of his future wives, if not more than one or two of them. Those future wives of his were all from families headed by other members of the group I've just mentioned here. Yes, I know you all might not like the idea of multiple marriages for people in their lives. But that was how things still were in the time that I'm telling you about right now and right here. Obarok would meet them on a picnic of sorts not far from where the Imperial Palace now is in Moon City. He and his parents in the city's government would have to attend a picnic hosted there by Gormak Chalinok, who was what you all might now call the city's Mayor, but not entirely. He was more like a King or an Emperor than he was the city's Mayor. But you could probably call him the equivalent of a Mayor, due to the fact that his own domain was not more than about a few hundred square Terran statute miles in size, most likely."

More soup and tea entered her mouth. And it did so as Sentinel Serenity went to the nearest opening of the nook. That was so she could see if it was yet safe for them all to leave the nook behind, at the very least, if she didn't go further away from the rest of her companions. After Sentinel Serenity did so, and returned to where she'd been in the nook, Bamboo eventually continued her story. But only after Sentinel Serenity told everyone else whether it was safe for them all to leave the nook and move down the necessary tunnel again. Sentinel Serenity said that the storm wasn't yet over, and that she didn't think that it was yet safe enough for them to leave the nook for a long enough time.

Then Bamboo said, "Obarok eventually went to that picnic a few months later, after he and his parents, and several other members of his parents' group, had already been in office for about two or three months. And when he did so, he eventually met up with at least two of his future wives, who were both or all just a little bit younger than he was at that time in his own life. Just after meeting them, they began playing near where the Imperium Silver Crystal would eventually be found, if not in the same place that it would be. Of course, while they were playing with each other, they were all being watched quite closely, for all the obvious reasons, by at least one of their parents' group of adults. They periodically played with each other in or near the palace of origin for the Imperium Silver Crystal, and they did so over at least the next few years of their lives."

After another sip of her tea, she continued to speak. "By the time that they were about as old as Mini Moon appears to be here, Obarok and at least two or three of his future wives had become quite good friends with each other in their lives. And they often spent time with each other, whenever they could do so, in their lives. Eventually, Gormak Chalinok could no longer keep himself from his own unplanned demise. And he found himself then falling as prey to the Angel of Death's own scythe. He fell from the land of the living by the time that Obarok was roughly eight Terran years of age. And he fell from it, when his horse threw him off and sent him over a cliff on an excursion to the other side of the Moon, where he'd gone in the hope of recuperating fully from attacks of various kinds of diseases, on the advice of a medicine man."

Moon asked, "What happened next, Bamboo?"

"When word of his unplanned demise reached his domain, the city's council eventually chose Obarok's parents as the new leaders of his domain. Obarok's parents ruled until Obarok was sufficiently old to rule as well, after which, they both abdicated their positions as active leaders of the city. The day before they did so, Obarok and a number of his friends had gone on a trip in the same area that they'd often played in as kids. That day, they eventually found the Imperium Silver Crystal buried in an underground cavern near where the Imperial Palace is, and quite near where the Crystal Palace will be. They eventually found it buried there, when water spouted out from a crack in the cavern's walls. Obarok and his current companions soon began digging in the cavern, and hacking away at one or more of the nearby walls in it, when they saw the water coming out of that crack. It took the combined efforts of him and all his current companions to get the Imperium Silver Crystal out of the necessary wall in the cavern. For it was buried quite deeply inside that wall, as a matter of fact. As they sought to mine the Imperium Silver Crystal from its place of origin, they also found themselves digging at least one hole in the cavern's nearby floor. They did this once they started hearing strange music in the cavern. They didn't actually know where the music was coming from, at least at first. So they dug at least one hole in the cavern's ground, until they found the Crescent Moon Wand."

Sentinel Serenity then asked, "Exactly where was the Crescent Moon Wand, Bamboo?"

"The Crescent Moon Wand was forty feet under the cavern's floor. And it took the efforts of all of Obarok's future wives to retrieve it from the required hole in the cavern's floor. The first of those future wives to then have sufficient enough control over it was his future first wife. Eventually, it got passed up out of the required hole by all of his future wives, until it reached his hands. Then he put it in a sack tied to his belt. After doing that, he pulled all of his future wives out of that hole, if the need arose. He did this for all the obvious reasons, of course. Then he and his future wives soon refilled all the holes in the floor they'd just dug in it. After that was done, he got the strange idea, once he looked at the Crescent Moon Wand for a few moments, that maybe it could help them all extract the Imperium Silver Crystal from the wall without them having to hack at it any longer."

Mars asked, "What happened next, Bamboo?"

"He then pointed it at the required wall, and his future wives each wrapped one of their hands around its handle, just as he did the same thing. His hand was at the bottom of the pile of hands, of course. And once he and all his future wives had wrapped one of their hands around the wand's handle, they all heard a strange voice say to them, 'Say the words, all of you, "Moon Crystal Power," and then you will all see what you seek.' They did so. The next thing they saw was a pillar of light on the wall. The pillar entered the wall seconds later, and soon exited it with the Imperium Silver Crystal inside it. The pillar then came to them, and engulfed them all inside it for a brief time. When it finally vanished from their sights, the Imperium Silver Crystal was attached to the wand at the bottom of the crescent moon. The voice spoke again, and said, 'Obarok and friends, you will found a great nation on the Moon, and this wand will help you find wise people to run that nation. When you found that nation, you're to remove the crystal attached to the wand, and place it in a certain locket that one of you will find not long before that day comes to you all. Once one of you finds that certain locket, you'll all instantly know it. The one of you who finds it will be the first female leader from that nation, and their line will rule at least until the time of the first actual nation-states on the Moon's surface, if not longer. After that nation is founded, you're not to remove that crystal from that very same locket, and reunite it with the wand, except in cases of extreme emergency. The same thing will be true for all future rulers of your nation or of any successor governments that are sufficiently related to it in the future.' Then they eventually heard no more from that certain voice, and that remained the case for at least one more day, if not longer. They returned to each of their homes, and years later, Obarok would marry each of them in turn, when the need arose for him to do that in his life."

She finished her soup and tea, before she read to her companions for at least another hour or two, if not longer than that. Of course, she read from the same scroll that she'd been reading from ever since she'd started to tell her story to them all. Or at least as long as she could continue doing that, before she'd have to roll up that scroll, and open another one to continue the story in question here.

Six hours after she'd begun reading her story to her companions, she began reading from a second scroll retrieved from her sack. By the time now reached in her story, Obarok had founded that nation with all his wives' help, plus the help of so many other people in his own nation. And their descendants had ruled over it for at least one or two centuries, if not longer than that. When she started reading in her story's second scroll, the story's year was now about 1170 BC, and their descendants were now ruled by someone named King Yoshioki. She read to her companions, "And he ruled over their nation, which by now was called 'Moonia,' and in time, Moonia eventually came to conquer all of the Moon's surface, as we should all know by now, of course." She spent at least another hour, if not even longer, telling of the time that'd passed between the reigns of Yoshioki and King Jason I of the Moon Kingdom, as she read from that scroll. But once she reached the date of their original arrivals in the Moon City area of 174 BC, she had to stop reading, for all the obvious reasons. Then, once she had to do so, she rolled up her second scroll again, and stored it back in her sack, so that it'd not get lost, if it could possibly be avoided at all.

After she did so, Moon said, "And now our world's people mainly have only one spouse apiece, if any of us have any at all. Sure, except for my mother, of course, none of us are married at the current time in each of our lives, I believe. But I'm reasonably sure that the practice of monoandry and monogamy is quite commonly practiced in each of our time periods by our societies' many people. No matter what our time periods may actually be for each of us in our lives, I'm at least reasonably sure that's generally practiced by most, if not all, people in each of our own societies, Bamboo."

"I agree with you here, Junior Sailor Moon."

Eventually, Sentinel Serenity checked on the conditions outside the nook currently in question again. And after she did so, she soon returned to all of her current companions. When she did so, she said, "The storm's over. We can now get out of here again, if we want to."

So as soon as everyone else heard that from Sentinel Serenity, they gathered up all their things again. That was if they'd not already done so by then, of course. After they'd all done so sufficiently well, they all eventually left the mountain in which they'd been hiding for at least a few hours, if not longer.

Then they set off for Taturaki, if they'd not yet gotten there by then. About two hours after doing that, they arrived in the middle of town, near the town's single school campus, if not on it. They soon found an underground tunnel leading to another underground cavern that was about 400 times as large as the underground cavern they'd been in while they were still in the mountain. They entered that tunnel, and that tunnel led them to a large clear area underground. In the middle of that area, there was also a rather large pool of water, if that water wasn't actually a small lake. That pool of water took up much of the clear area in that underground cavern. Several projections jutted out over the pool, and two of them were each larger than all of the others each were. Those projections were not connected to each other, and all the other projections weren't either. But those two largest projections were the closest to each other at their respective nearest ends to each other. A gap of no more than twenty feet, and no less than eight feet, separated the two ends of those largest projections that hung over the aforementioned pool or lake of water from each other. The gap was most likely large enough to keep most of the Scouts from being able to jump it easily enough, if they wanted to do that. Several of the projections even came out of the nearest walls to the pool or lake of water. And they made it very hard for all of Sentinel Serenity's companions to walk past them, because of that simple fact. Or to climb on them, and to jump between them to the other side of the cavern easily enough, as a matter of fact.

Some of the horses might be able to get around the projections without having to either jump over or swim in the water, and some might not. But Sentinel Serenity didn't yet know if that was the case. Nor would she until she and others tried to see if the horses would be able to easily enough get past those projections in that underground cavern, of course.

They eventually tried to see if the horses would easily enough be able to get past the projections and the water, of course. But not all of them were able to do so. For several of them were still carrying at least a few of the Scouts' things, for all the obvious reasons. Eventually, while they were trying to see if they'd be able to get the horses past those projections, Mercury and a few of the Scouts saw some things glimmering at the bottom of the pool or lake of water. They consulted at least a little bit, if not a lot, with Sentinel Serenity here.

After about an hour of conversation, at most, with Sentinel Serenity here, Neptune Beta and Mercury came up with an idea that satisfied Sentinel Serenity to a sufficient enough degree, with at least some help from Sailor Chrysalis. Sailor Chrysalis had just gotten a rather strange idea that there might be a closet of some yet-unknown sort just behind one of the underground cavern's nearby walls. For when she'd entered the cavern with the rest of the scouts and their companions, she'd experienced a very brief and very strange vision of two environmental suits of Katrelomisian design being normally hidden behind the cavern's walls. And of a tunnel leading underwater to another part of the same cavern, where a vat-like pool would also be located. She told Mercury, Neptune Beta, and Sentinel Serenity about this vision, and where those suits might be hidden in the walls.

Sentinel Serenity retrieved the Crescent Moon Wand from either her things or Moon's things. If she had to retrieve it from Moon's things, she asked Moon if she could do so before she did so, of course. And if she had to retrieve it from her things, she didn't have to ask anyone if she could do that. Then she brought it near the necessary cavern wall, as if to scan for the presences of those suits. This she did after Chrysalis suggested that she do so. The next thing everyone sentient knew there, another small projection started showing in that wall. And this projection was not very large at all. It had a total visible volume of about forty cubic inches, at the very most. It was more like a handle than it was like anything else that sentients might possibly ever consider it to be. This handle-like projection jutted out about eight or so inches from the area of the wall around it. It was about two or three inches wide, at its widest parts. And the other dimension was no more than about two inches in size, because of the aforementioned total visible volume for the projection's actual size. After that projection came out as far as it would, Chrysalis told Sentinel Serenity to stow the Crescent Moon Wand elsewhere on her person, before she pulled the handle in question here. Sentinel Serenity stowed away the wand. When Chrysalis told her to pull it, she pulled the handle.

Twenty seconds or so later, part of the wall quite near the handle slid to Serenity's left to eventually reveal a hidden nook of the cavern. Chrysalis told Serenity to enter that nook, and Serenity did so. Serenity entered that nook. And she soon found a long-deserted table, closet, and bed in it, at the very least, if nothing else as well. When she told Chrysalis what she saw, Chrysalis told her to open the closet, once she got a key-like crystal from under the bed. Serenity took that crystal out from under the bed. As soon as Serenity did so, part of the ceiling opened up. And a crystal chandelier that looked much like the one that Moon had been in as Serena when her last siblings had been born in Moon City back in AD 987, if not entirely like it, then descended. Fifteen seconds after it reached as far down from the ceiling as it would, many candles on the chandelier flickered to life. The nook soon was bathed in a great deal of light, after they did so. Of course, Serenity reported this to everyone else. After she did that, Chrysalis then told her to go over to the closet, and insert the crystal in a keyhole of sorts, so that she could unlock it easily enough. Serenity did so. Five seconds later, then, Serenity heard the clicks of several tumblers opening the lock for the closet. After the last tumbler clicked, the closet door soon began opening. When it was open to a sufficient enough degree, Serenity then reached into the closet, and soon retrieved both suits. After doing that, she told Chrysalis that she had two suits with her then. Chrysalis said that once they got at least thirty feet from the nook where the closet was, they'd most likely function for no more than four hours before they'd have to be returned to their closet again. So Serenity wasted no unnecessary time in getting herself back to the rest of her current companions. It took her only about two minutes to get back to the rest of her companions. Then she soon handed both suits to Mercury and Neptune Beta.

"Girls, please be careful, if you can be," Serenity soon said, as Mercury and Neptune Beta quite quickly each donned one of the suits.

Mercury said, "Of course we will be, if at all possible. Hopefully we both won't have to be in each of these suits too long." Then she and Neptune Beta soon closed up the suits with themselves inside them, of course. After they did that, they both soon climbed up on just one of the largest projections from the nearby cavern walls. Ten seconds later, at most, after waving to the rest of her non-suited companions, Mercury dove into the pool or small lake of water with a two-somersault with four full twists dive in the forward position. She entered the water with barely a ripple or splash to be seen or heard by her non-suited companions. Thirty seconds later, after she got far enough from her entrance point, she called Neptune Beta, and told her to dive in as well. Neptune Beta did so, ten seconds later, with a pike-position dive of five somersaults and two full twists. Like Mercury, she also entered the water with barely a ripple or splash to be seen or heard by her companions who were currently non-suited. She soon joined Mercury about ten feet, lengthwise, away from their common entrance point into the water, and then they both dove even deeper into the water. Down they went until they were at the bottom of the pool or lake of water. And when they got there, they found a series of gold coins leading away from their common entrance point. They followed those coins down a nearby underwater tunnel. And they soon enough came to a solid rock wall, upon which there were several projections. Mercury and Neptune Beta both reported this to Chrysalis through Serenity.

Chrysalis thought for a few moments, while Mercury and Neptune Beta were floating near that wall, and then said, "Mercury, you two are not to touch the projections that look like triangles or octagons. The only projection you two are to touch is the one that looks like a five-pointed star. Or at least partly, if not entirely, like one, Mercury. The others will reveal underwater tunnels that'll eventually lead you to pits of molten lava, while the only one that you are to touch will reveal a tunnel that'll not do that. The tunnel that won't lead you to pits of molten lava will bring you both to a vat-like container not long afterward. Then, you'll have to tap on the ceiling of the tunnel you're in then, as I will direct you both. That's so the bottom of that container opens enough for you to enter it from outside it. Then you'll have to swim up into that container, until you reach a red wall of it. On that wall, there'll be a series of differently-colored stars. You'll have to touch several of those stars in the exact order I'll tell you later, when you get that far."

Mercury and Neptune Beta then touched the necessary projection. And part of the nearby wall slid to one side, until it opened enough to let them both then pass through it. As they did so, a great deal of the water they were in now followed them through the aforementioned hole in the cavern's wall, of course.

They passed through it by swimming through it. For they weren't yet able to walk well enough in the underwater tunnel, for a long enough time. They swam through the chosen tunnel, until they came to a point just below the ceiling of the tunnel. They then told Chrysalis that they were under the required tunnel's ceiling. Moments later, then, both Mercury and Neptune Beta tapped a drum-like beat on the ceiling in the proper pattern, once Chrysalis told them how to tap the tunnel's ceiling in the required pattern. Then, after they both did that, the ceiling opened up, and whisked them out of the tunnel into the vat-like container.

Then Chrysalis said, once they told her that they were near the necessary red wall for the container in question here, "Mercury, you're to touch the stars in this particular order. The order you have to touch them in is gold, black, silver, turquoise blue, and orange. The gold star you have to touch is on the aqua green wall. The black star is on the red wall. The silver star is on the orange wall. The turquoise blue star is on the royal blue wall. And the orange star is on the hunter green wall. You'll have, I believe, about one minute to touch each star when the need arises for you to do so. Neptune Beta, I believe that within one minute after she touches stars of all of those five colors, on each of their walls, you'll also need to touch stars of the following colors in this order. The order that you are to touch them in is the red star on the aqua green wall, the royal blue star on the red wall, the purple star on the silver wall, the hunter green star on the orange wall, and the gold star on the royal blue wall. If you girls take too long to touch each of the stars in the container, the bottom might drop out of it, and you might find yourselves back in the tunnel prematurely. Mercury, you now have, I think, about twenty seconds to touch the first star you have to touch there. Call me when you both have touched all the stars in the required orders, if you possibly can."

Mercury then touched the gold star on the aqua green wall, before it was too late for her to do so. And she then swam to the red wall, as Neptune Beta touched the red star on the wall Mercury had just left, seconds later. As Neptune Beta swam to the red wall, Mercury touched the black star she had to touch on it. Then Neptune Beta touched the royal blue star on the red wall, as Mercury moved to the orange wall. As Mercury then touched the silver star on that wall, Neptune Beta quickly swam to the silver wall. Next, Neptune Beta touched the purple star on that wall, as Mercury moved to the royal blue wall. Mercury then touched the turquoise blue star on that wall, as her fellow Scout moved to the orange wall, so that she could touch the hunter green star there. Neptune Beta soon touched that star, as Mercury then moved to the hunter green wall, so that she could touch the last star that she'd have to touch for at least the time being. Mercury then touched the last star she had to touch at the current time, as Neptune Beta also moved to the royal blue wall, so that she could touch the gold star on it too. No more than a minute after Mercury touched the orange star she had to touch on the hunter green wall, Neptune Beta then touched the gold star on the royal blue wall of the vat-like container that they were both still in.

After they both touched all ten of the stars that they had to touch, at least for the time being, they were both quite quickly ejected out of the container by a geyser-like spout. That spout sent them sailing through the air quite unexpectedly, of course. And as it did so, they told Chrysalis that they'd touched each of the ten stars just as they'd needed to touch them in the vat-like container. The spout caused them both to somersault in the air at least five times each, and it also made them both do at least four twists apiece in the air. It kept sufficient enough control of them both, at least until they were both at least five feet from the nearest edges of the vat-like container they'd just been in together. And a few seconds after the spout let them both go, they both landed quite safely on their feet about five or so feet away from each other. They both landed about five feet away from a round table that had a diameter of forty feet, from what they could currently tell about it.

Chrysalis heard this, and she said, "Mercury, there should be at least a few scrolls in the middle of the table. There should be a hole about four feet in diameter in the exact middle of the table. The scrolls should be positioned in holders around the hole. One of you will have to duck under the table to access the hole easily enough. The smaller one of you should do that."

Mercury said, "I'm smaller than Neptune Beta is right now."

"All right. Mercury, duck under the table and access the hole as quickly as you can."

Mercury did so, and then asked Chrysalis what to do next. Chrysalis said, "Mercury, please tell me how many scrolls you see now."

"I see eight, for sure, and possibly at least another two more are also in holders around the hole."

"Can you confirm that, Neptune Beta, from where you now are in the cavern?"

"There are twelve around the hole, Chrysalis," answered Neptune Beta, about a minute later.

"Mercury, there are twelve scrolls around you. Are you facing the vat now?"

"Yes, I am. The vat is slightly to my left, as I face it. I am in the hole, about three dozen feet away from the vat, which is in a position about ten degrees from being in a northerly direction for me. I am facing directly north. The vat's nearest part to me is about ten degrees from being directly in front of me. There is a scroll directly in front of me. The other eleven scrolls, which I now see all of here, are currently spaces at intervals of about thirty degrees from each other, in a single circle. Most of those scrolls are tied either with a red ribbon or a pink ribbon, if not both."

Chrysalis paused for a moment to think over the situation, and then asked, "Mercury, what colors are the ribbons on the scrolls directly in front of you, directly to your left, directly behind you, and directly to your right?"

Mercury looked at each of the aforementioned scrolls' ribbons briefly, and then answered, "The one in front of me is tied with a gold ribbon. The one to my left has a black ribbon on it. The one in back of me has a navy blue ribbon around it. The one to my right has a maroon ribbon holding it together now."

"Take only the scrolls that have the gold ribbon or the navy blue ribbon on them. The other two scrolls, you're both to leave alone. Those you're not to take. Those two scrolls can't leave the part of the cavern they're in now. And you're to leave the other eight scrolls with red or pink ribbons on them where they are. Those scrolls also can't leave that part of the cavern."

Mercury took the only two scrolls she could take out of their holders around the table's center hole. Then, after she did so, Chrysalis said, "Mercury, you're to carry the gold-ribboned scroll in a pouch of your suit. And you'll have to hand Neptune Beta the scroll with the navy blue ribbon around it. She's to put it in a pouch of her suit. Then you are to stand near the vat-like container until its geyser-like spout grabs you up again. It'll return you to the vat-like container in very short order. Then you're to each touch the stars that you touched earlier around its walls, but in the opposite order that you touched each of them earlier. Starting with Neptune Beta, so that you, Mercury, will be the last to touch such a star on its walls. Call me again when you both have completed these steps, you two."

Mercury and Neptune Beta did as they'd been directed to do by Chrysalis. And just before the bottom of the vat-like container opened up again, they told her what they then had to tell her there. Seconds after doing so, they dropped through the bottom of the container, and back into the underwater tunnel they'd both been in a while earlier. They swam through the tunnel until they reached the other side of the rock wall that'd slid to one side to let them get into it earlier.

Chrysalis told them both to touch the same kind of projection that they'd touched to access that tunnel. And they did so, in very short order. After they touched the star-like projection on that side of the wall, the wall soon slid to the appropriate side. After which, they passed through the resulting hole again. When they did so, they soon began seeing the trail of gold coins again. As they both did so, they followed those coins back to where they'd earlier entered the water. And they had about ten to fifteen minutes, at the very most, of air left in each of their suits, when they both got to just under their common entrance point into the water. It'd quite possibly take them most of that time to get themselves both up to the water's surface, which was about eight hundred or so feet above both of their heads at the current time. But not all of that time, most likely.

They spent most of the next eight to ten minutes rising to the surface as quickly and as safely as they both could do that, of course. They didn't rush things, if they didn't have to. And they both broke the surface about twenty seconds apart, for all the obvious reasons. Neptune Beta broke the surface first, and then Mercury did so, once Neptune Beta was far enough away from her to allow her to do that. When Neptune Beta got about four to six feet away from her, at the very least, Mercury broke the surface as well. And Neptune Beta soon swam to the same large projection that she and Mercury had earlier dived off of, reaching it about ten seconds before Mercury did the same. As soon as they each touched it, they each opened their suits, at least so that they didn't have to rely on the air that was still contained in them both. As soon as the suits sensed that they'd been opened, specifically in their head regions, the airflow for each of them ceased about ten seconds later. Mercury and Neptune Beta waded out of the water no more than about a minute apart, after their suits had shut off the airflow for each of them. Mercury and Neptune Beta ran as quickly and as safely as they could into the nook that Serenity had been in earlier, once Chrysalis told them that they had to do that. Then Chrysalis and Serenity both followed Mercury and Neptune Beta quite quickly into that nook. Mercury and Neptune Beta quickly unzipped their suits, and they quickly peeled them off themselves. After they did that, they carried their suits over to the long-deserted table in the nook. After they did that, Chrysalis opened the required pouch on Neptune Beta's suit, while Sentinel Serenity did the same for the necessary pouch on Mercury's suit. Within fifteen more seconds after they both did so, both scrolls had been retrieved from the required pouches. And the scrolls were handed back to Mercury and Neptune Beta as Serenity and Chrysalis quite hastily and quite efficiently took care of their suits, and while those suits were both put back in their closet again.

As Serenity and Chrysalis stored away the suits now in question here, Mercury and Neptune Beta placed the scrolls on the table. Chrysalis soon said, "Mercury, open your scroll now."

Mercury did so. All four Scouts soon saw the words, "When you all finally get to the X on your map, a comet will soon appear in the sky. After the comet finally sinks below the nearest horizon, you'll all see, within one Terran hour, a gold cross directly over all of your heads. When you see it, you'll all know a way has been provided for you to get back to your homeworld. After you all see it, you're all to camp in that place's immediate area until that certain way finally makes itself known to you there, if you're not already there. When that way then comes to you all, don't fight it, for it'll bring you all back to your own homeworld, just as you were whisked away from it earlier. You'll all return to it at the exact time that you all left it earlier. Then you'll all be back on your homeworld again." The scroll said nothing more at all after that. Or at least not that they could all easily enough understand somehow.

Then Neptune Beta opened her scroll. She and the other Scouts now with her soon saw the words, "Not long after you all return to your homeworld, you'll all find yourselves on the future Crystal Palace's grounds in Moon City there. You'll find yourselves in a place that'll eventually become known as the Sailor Scout Garden there. In that place, Queen Eve will soon find a shield about eight feet underground. The shield will be decorated with a yellow crescent moon, a red rose with pink tips, a red sun, and a white mask, except in the exact center of its front. The yellow crescent moon will be in the upper left corner as everyone else might normally see it besides its possessor. The pink-tipped rose will be in the upper right corner of the shield as most people might be able to see the shield. The red sun is to be in the lower right corner of the shield, in like manner. And then the white mask is to be in the lower left corner of it, also in like manner. Last, there will be a large navy blue five-pointed star on a white-trimmed gold background in the exact center of the shield's front section. And in the exact middle of that same star, there will be a red-trimmed pink heart. This will be the sign that all future Sailor Scouts are to be initiated as Scouts of any kind, whenever possible, in this place, at least until the Silver Millennium's end, if not even longer than that. If the Moon Kingdom ever ceases to exist, for any reason whatsoever, this shield will bury itself in the exact same place it'd been found in, or it will somehow be transferred to Earth, if possible. If it doesn't bury itself where it was originally found, it'll eventually be found on Earth in at least one of its Zones, if not more than one of them. If that ever proves to be the case, eventually, the first one to find it will be the leaders of any Scouts that might be around there, if they're not already. Supposing that they're somehow worthy enough to have possession of it in their lives, of course. Only those with a true heart will ever find it easily enough in their lives, somehow, in fact. It'll never appear to those who aren't worthy to have possession of it in their lives. No matter what." After those words in the scroll, no more words that they could all understand well enough were present in the scroll at all. And Neptune Beta soon rolled up the scroll again, and tied it closed.

The next thing they all knew, both scrolls that Mercury and Neptune Beta had just brought to that nook began disappearing from sight. And they were no longer visible within a minute after they began disappearing from sight. The scrolls disappeared from sight when they both turned into small spheres of light energy, and soon, not even those spheres still remained visible to all four Scouts who were with each other in the same nook of the cavern. In fact, those scrolls actually returned to the exact places from which Mercury had earlier taken them out of their holders in the holey table. And after they did so, the closet suddenly began rapidly opening and closing itself. When the four Scouts now here heard the closet do that, Chrysalis said, "We have two minutes to get out of this nook again, before we'll be trapped here for quite a while, if not forever."

So all four of them quite quickly left that nook, with Serenity also pulling the key-like crystal out of the closet's door, and putting it back in the exact same place she'd gotten it from under the bed. Then, after they'd done so, Serenity soon closed off the passage leading to the nook in question again by pushing in the required projection from the necessary cavern wall. That soon made all the other visible projections in the cavern's walls also retract themselves into them. After they'd all done so completely, that allowed all of Serenity's current companions to pass around the pool or lake of water that Mercury and Neptune Beta had both been in earlier with each other. They all passed that water, and entered another tunnel. For about another few hours, at most, Serenity and the rest of her companions stayed underground, until they were able to reach the planet's surface again for a long enough time.

* * *

So now Serenity and many others are still not back to the Moon, even the Moon of 174 BC. How much longer will they need to travel and what else will happen for them before they all can actually return to the Moon, if they aren't native to this world in truth themselves? You'll all just have to continue reading on to find out. There's still a lot more story to tell here, for sure, folks. And a lot more adventure to come for everyone who's not actually a native of this world here, in any case.

Until later, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Okay, this chapter is going to have at least one big bit of fighting here, if not more than one, for many of the people now on Tarokauni III, for sure. They will not have an easy time of it, but they will still fight various beings during it, whether sentient or not, in any case.

This will be a major battle on their quest to return to the Moon, even the Moon of 174 BC. And it will likely be an particularly memorable battle for them as well. Especially after some new attacks are created by certain Scouts now in the Katrelomisian Empire of Tarokauni III during it, at that.

With no further ado, then, here's the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , folks. TUS out.

* * *

Somewhere Near Lake Kenokoa

September 15, 174 BC

Oshajimi, Katrelomisian Empire, Tarokauni III

Sometime later, then, after reaching the locations of at least two other turquoise blue diamonds on their map, the Scouts and all their current companions got no more than about twenty miles from the nearest shore of Lake Kenokoa, and no less than half that distance from it. They were mainly following the nearby Tatukoni River, still, at the current time, as they'd often been doing since leaving the area of Crystalion behind some length of time before. Eventually, they came to a town called Oshajimi elsewhere in the Katrelomisian Empire, which was marked by yet another turquoise blue diamond on their map. The town was not very large, but it still had a quite commonly-used road running through it, just the same. And they'd have to pass through it to get to their final destination anyway, no matter what.

Even if various kinds of monsters might be rumored to exist and live there, they'd all still have to pass through the town in order to get to their final destination on Lake Kenokoa's shores. They all might not like the idea of having to possibly fight any number of monsters on the way to the necessary place, of course. But if they had to, they most likely would do so, no matter what. Periodically, they'd encountered natives of Tarokauni III while heading toward their final destination on it. And those people had often suggested to them all that various kinds of monsters might actually exist on, over, or under its planetary surface. So they all realized that they'd all have to try to stay quite alert, whenever possible, as they all traveled to the required place there.

Eventually, they all entered the town with each other. They all soon came to a series of buildings in the town, as they'd all been directed to do by a scroll that they'd all found one turquoise diamond ago. That diamond was located on their map where they'd last reached a key location on their trip toward Lake Kenokoa. A scroll had told them to investigate certain buildings in the town of Oshajimi. So that was what they were about to do. Sentinel Serenity, of course, had to split up her companions into groups of at least two sentients apiece for them to investigate those buildings. She didn't like it, but she still had to do that, just the same. And she did so, after first making sure that all their horses were in sufficiently safe places, while they'd have to check out all the required buildings in the aforementioned town.

Luna, Artemis, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus investigated one building in the town. Serenity, Moon, Corona, Eclipse, Mini Moon, and Peppermint did the same for another. Calypso, Chrysalis, Bamboo, Jasmine, Cinnamon, and Rainbow took a third. Skyhorse investigated a fourth building with Saturn Beta, Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, and Pluto Beta. Amilaram, Sierra, Paquasim, and Onziza checked out a fifth. That left Firehawk, Sacala, Enisangob, and Ocabirama to check out a sixth building.

No problems came the way of Luna, Calypso, and Amilaram's groups, when they each checked out the required buildings in the town. But Serenity, Skyhorse, and Firehawk's groups soon came under fire from unexpected beings in those buildings. Serenity told Luna and Artemis to go back to where their horses were now staying. And she told Mercury and the rest of her group to make sure they got safely back there, before they went to where Skyhorse's group was encountering some unexpected fire. Mercury acknowledged this order of Serenity's, and then Mercury's group did as ordered of them. As they did so, Serenity told Amilaram's group to help their fellow Monitors/Scouts. So Amilaram had her group then do so, of course. That left Calypso's group yet to be assigned to reinforce other members of their party. Quite naturally, Sentinel Serenity ordered them to reinforce her own group, of course. After all the groups were assigned as Serenity thought they should be, Serenity waited for those groups to completely carry out all her orders.

She did this while she, Moon, Corona, Eclipse, Mini Moon, and Peppermint all did whatever they could against those beings who were then attacking them. They were currently being attacked by half a dozen or more good-sized beings. And those beings had heads like horses, except for the fact that most, if not all, of their exposed skin was much like that of a Terran alligator or crocodile, quite possibly. Those beings could stand somewhat erect at times, and they each had tails about five to ten feet long, on the average. They each had four claw-like feet, each of which consisted of eight finger-like projections from their palms. Those feet were about two feet in average diameter, at least in the front. Their front feet could also serve much like hands, while their back feet couldn't. Their usual coloration was often either dark green or dark blue, with very little variation, generally, for any of them. And those beings were currently not the exception here against the Scouts. Those beings, as a matter of fact, were firing weapons much like machine guns, if not weapons of that exact kind, toward the Scouts that they were now opposing. At the moment, Serenity and her Scouts were doing whatever they could do to keep themselves from being hit by flying projectiles or breaking items.

Even if they had to try to dodge pieces of breaking items, they did so, to the best of their abilities. When they had to do so, they also quite obviously tried to stay where they couldn't be hit by flying projectiles sent their ways by their opponents, of course. It wasn't all that easy for them to do, but they still did it, just the same, as they waited for reinforcements. Reinforcements in the forms of Calypso, Chrysalis, Bamboo, Cinnamon, Rainbow, and Jasmine, in fact, at the very least, if nobody else as well at the current time.

Eventually, Peppermint said, as quietly as she could, "Either we need to get out of here, people, or we need to find a way to hide ourselves at least a little bit, until we can counterattack our current opponents here."

"If Saturn Beta were here, I think she'd be able to hide us at least a little bit. But she's not. So we have to figure something else out in the meantime," said Sentinel Serenity.

Mini Moon thought for a moment, as she and the rest of her current companions huddled behind various large items in their current building, no matter what those items might be here. Then she asked, "I have an idea. Corona, can you still use at least your Solar Wind Blast power?"

"I have at least some power left in that area for myself, Mini Moon."

"What about your Silent Shadow power, Eclipse?"

"Same thing. What do you want us to do, then?"

"Cause a distraction of sufficient size, if you can."

"That might be hard to do. We might have to expose ourselves at least a little bit, Mini Moon."

"Understood. Does anyone here have a power that allows them to shroud themselves or others in fog, for instance, or something similar enough?"

Peppermint said, "If I remember correctly enough, Mini Moon, I believe that I have such a power. But if I'm not too mistaken here, I somehow think you have an idea that you still might need me to carry out some other part of your plan."

"If I had my ball, I think that I'd be able to use it here. But I don't, Peppermint. So I'll have to think of something else instead."

She did this for a few moments longer, and only a few moments longer, before she spotted some barrels of what appeared to be strange chemicals of yet-unknown sorts. Then she asked Peppermint if she currently had with her some sort of sensing device, other than maybe her own Imperium Silver Crystal, of course. Peppermint said, "As a matter of fact, I believe that I do, Mini Moon."

"Please use it to scan the barrels that I'm now pointing out to you." Mini Moon said this, as she indicated what barrels that she was now talking about here.

Peppermint did so, and soon reported, "I think that we can use them to hide ourselves for a little while. We could hide ourselves from our opponents' view for a time, and still be able to see them through whatever's hiding us from them at the same time. I think that we can make something appear around us that won't cause any of us any problems at all, at least, if nobody else as well here."

"Do what you have to do then, please, Peppermint."

"All right, Mini Moon. Everyone, please stay as far away from the barrels in question, then, if you can. For I could be wrong about whether or not the strange chemicals would be able to hurt us at all, if they got too close to us here." Everyone did as Peppermint then said to do, as Peppermint then generated several chains of solid metal out of thin air, so to speak. She generated at least one chain per barrel that she was going to try to use the contents of, of course. After doing so, she quite quickly lassoed each barrel, one at a time, as she popped up and down. As she did so, Corona and Eclipse covered her as best as they could with the necessary attacks of theirs against their opponents, whenever the need arose for them to do so at all here.

Eventually, she had all the necessary barrels lassoed with her chains. And she was about to pull them over one at a time, quite naturally. Seconds later, she pulled the first of those barrels toward her. When it hit a barricade of sorts between her and it, it tipped somewhat, and began spinning, still under her control. She controlled it at least until she finally decided to let it go. Seconds after she did so, the contents of that barrel began emptying out onto the floor around it. Moments later, it was completely empty, and Peppermint was about to tip the second barrel over enough to allow its contents to mix with the chemicals that were already on the floor. The second barrel soon followed the first, and it rolled toward the first as it was emptying its contents onto the floor as well. When the chemicals from the first two barrels began mixing to at least some degree, a multi-phasic shield of some sort began developing. Granted, that shield might not last for a very long time. But it still might last at least long enough for Mini Moon to carry out the plan she was thinking of trying to carry out at the current time. At least that was what all the Scouts who were now present here hoped, as Peppermint continued to tip over barrels that Mini Moon had just indicated to her. The first level of that multi-phasic shield was largely, if not entirely, of a fog nature. The next was essentially of an ice nature. The one after that was mainly of a fire nature. The level after that was primarily of an arboreal nature, while the fifth level was of a chain nature, mainly. Within ten to twenty minutes. at the very most, of her beginning to tip over those barrels, then, Peppermint had a reasonably stable shield with at least five levels to it, and possibly even at least six, if not even more than that.

When she saw that they might now be able to have some breathing room, in terms of their opponents then not being able to directly attack them well enough, she said, "Mini Moon, I think that we can carry out at least the next part of your plan now."

"All right, Peppermint. If that's now true here, I'll need you to get out at least some of the capsules that I think you might be carrying with you now. I'll gladly provide a bowl, if Sentinel Serenity will also provide some water to dissolve all of those capsules in."

Peppermint searched in the things that she now had with her, as Mini Moon and Serenity did the same for their own things. Moments later, then, Mini Moon and Serenity set their respective contributions on a table that was somewhat near them. Peppermint met them at the table with her capsules. Then Mini Moon said, "It seems to me that you'll need to handle all these things together, Peppermint. I can't handle them all together. For I don't have the necessary knowledge that might allow me to do so here, I know."

"What about Serenity here?"

"With all due respect to her, of course, I really don't think she does either. She obviously knows about a whole lot of things in her life. But for some yet-unknown reason to me, she doesn't really seem to know as much as I think she might need to know here," said Mini Moon.

"Then how will I know how to handle each of these things, Mini Moon?"

"The answer to that question is somehow already written in your heart, I think, Peppermint."

"I hope you're right. Then, just in case that's true here, I suggest that all of you stay as far back from me as you can, while I handle all these things together."

"Agreed," said Mini Moon. So Mini Moon and the rest of Peppermint's current Scout companions got as far away from Peppermint as they each could do so, while still remaining within the multi-phasic shields that Sailor Peppermint had just erected around them. When they did so, Peppermint reached into her things that she was still carrying. And she took out a full-body suit and gloves. This suit of hers was much like the environmental suits that Mercury and Neptune Beta had used earlier, but also much like the environmental suits that natives of the Milky Way Galaxy's Sol System might possibly ever wear in their own lives, whenever the need arose for them to do so at all. The gloves were of a type that would allow Peppermint to safely enough handle the capsules, bowl, and water she'd have to handle for at least a little while, if not a long while. Peppermint donned both the suit and gloves in very short order, then.

After she was suited up, and the suit was providing her at least enough air for her needs, whatever they might be, Peppermint began pouring the provided water into the available bowl. She poured all the necessary water into that bowl before she ever dropped a single capsule into that water-filled bowl.

One capsule at a time soon followed another into the water, after the first one entered it with very little, if any, splash at all. Each capsule put into the water dissolved fairly quickly, once it'd been in the water long enough, as a matter of simple enough fact. Soon enough, then, a somewhat large pinkish cloud of some sort appeared immediately around the area of the table that Peppermint was now working at here. This cloud wasn't present where Peppermint was working, except as it rose to a point about four feet over her head, before it spread out around the table area she was now working in. From the bowl to the top of the clear area, then, there was a pillar of some sort of pink fog. It wasn't actually of a poisonous nature, at least to her or her fellow Scout companions. But it still might be to their current opponents, if they were somehow ever able to break well enough through the multi-phasic shields she'd established some length of time before.

As she worked under a pinkish shroud of some sort of fog, a mostly pink sash eventually appeared. She soon set it aside, and far enough away from the bowl that was currently in question here, just in case the bowl might accidentally tip over somehow. Either by being accidentally tipped over by her, or by being tipped over by something or someone else entirely. Whatever it or who it might be, as a matter of fact.

Several bazooka-like weapons, at least, if not any other kinds of weapons as well, soon became visible as she continued to work at the table, with her hands often in the bowl. She set each of them as far away from the bowl as she could, as soon as she could do so. Several canisters or grenade-like items soon followed, as soon as they possibly could do so. Two mirrors eventually came out of the bowl, under her quite careful hands, as well. She continued to work with the contents of the bowl for as long as she could then do so. Meaning at least until she had nothing more in it that she could work with well enough at the current time except the water, if not even longer than that, as a matter of fact.

Eventually, the cloud around her began to dissipate into thin air, in a manner of speaking. And she began to become visible again, at least to her current Scout companions, if not to anyone else at all who was currently in their present building. When it was completely dissipated into the necessary air, she told the other Scouts who were now with her. And she began distributing items she'd just pulled out of the provided bowl full of water to her current Scout companions. She kept the sash for herself, and donned it, as soon as she could safely do so.

Peppermint then gave Moon several canisters and/or grenade-like items to use with her current bazooka-like weapon. Moon put them in a pouch that she was now wearing on her belt.

Serenity received some canisters and grenade-like items as well, not to mention a weapon that could fire them sufficiently well, if the need arose for her to do so, from Peppermint. Peppermint also showed Serenity how she could hide at least the canisters and grenade-like items in various martial arts weapons that Serenity would often enough carry with her in her life. Serenity would at least occasionally carry long wooden staffs with her, for instance. Staffs that could often enough be called bos. Serenity, at least sometimes, would also carry sais and various other forms of swords and daggers, for the obvious reasons, whenever she could, in her life.

After Peppermint distributed all of the necessary items that she'd just pulled out of the bowl as she saw fit, if she didn't keep them, she poured the remaining contents of the bowl of water into at least a few small pouches she'd also pulled out of it earlier. After doing that enough to fill at least six to eight small pouches, she tied off each pouch with a ribbon she'd found in each of the pouches as she'd pulled them out of the bowl. After she'd finished tying off all those pouches with the necessary ribbons, a slingshot quite suddenly materialized out of what essentially might be considered to be thin air. This slingshot was only large enough to hold one of the pouches at a time, as a matter of fact. And if she was good enough to do so, she might even be able to make one or more of those pouches hit, quite accurately indeed, a target that was at least half a mile away, if not even farther away. Supposing that she wasn't forced to fire them in more crowded situations than that, of course. Like if she had to fire them in a building of small enough size, for example. Such as the one she was now in with several other Scouts, quite naturally. After then stowing away all of the necessary pouches in a larger one she'd suddenly found under the table while working on the things she'd pulled out of the bowl, she took off her environmental suit and the gloves she'd just used. She retrieved a medium-sized box from her sack. Then she opened it, and pressed a certain button she saw in it along one side of its bottom's inside area. That established some sort of energy field around her gloves and her suit. With that field established sufficiently well, the box engaged a certain program in its memory, once she pressed another button near the first one. That made the new contents of the energy field transfer themselves to a certain part of the bottom's inside area near a small keypad. The energy field traveled through the air from close to, if not on, the table to the inside of the box's bottom part. Seconds later, she pressed a third button, which engaged a box-closing program. And before it'd close on her hands, she quite naturally withdrew her hands again, of course. The box would automatically remain closed until such time as the contents of it would somehow be safe enough to touch again, most likely, if not most definitely. At least as it might pertain in any conceivable enough way to any kind of being who might actually be native to the Milky Way Galaxy's Sol System, anyway, quite naturally.

Calypso's group soon checked in with Serenity here. And Calypso said that it'd be at least a few more minutes, most likely, before she and her group could also enter the building where Serenity now was with five other Scouts. Serenity didn't like that idea, of course, but she still accepted it as best as she possibly could at the current time, as Moon, Corona, Eclipse, and Mini Moon periodically counterattacked their opponents. Serenity and Peppermint told their fellow Scouts who were now moving to reinforce them as quickly as possible about whatever they could tell them, while the younger Scouts covered them as best as they possibly could at the current time.

Moon soon pounded one of their opponents with her Mini-Moon Crystal Storm attack, as Corona sent a Solar Wind Blast, and Eclipse sent a Night Owl Storm attack, toward the exact same opponent. All three of those Scouts attacked the same opponent from three different directions. Eclipse did so from a position above, in front of, and to the left, of that opponent, as she was facing that foe of theirs, because she attacked from a balcony of sorts elsewhere in the building. Corona attacked from a position about ten degrees lower than Eclipse, about fifty degrees to Eclipse's right, but still in front of that opponent. Corona did this while Moon also attacked them from a position that was actually on the floor, but also directly facing their right side.

It soon turned out that the opponent in question could no longer withstand the attacks of the three Scout sisters from three different directions. And he then fell to their combined attacks in rather short order. He was quite quickly torn apart by the night owls from Eclipse's attack on him, if Corona's Solar Wind Blast attack didn't do that first to him. And what little then remained of him, if anything at all still did so somehow, almost immediately began hitting other opponents that still were present and still fighting against the Scouts currently around here.

Blood and various other parts of him soon landed on at least one, if not more than one, of his surviving companions. And when they did so, that quite often posed at least some trouble for those companions of his, due to certain circumstances that were most likely too numerous to mention in sufficient enough detail. That was at least at the current time, most likely, if it wouldn't always be the case here, of course.

His quite-unexpected demise even caused parts of him to land on the eyes of at least one of his companions. Which helped to blind them to at least some degree, if they weren't the only things that caused at least temporary blindness, if not permanent blindness, of the affected companion or companions of his. The affected being or beings quite mistakenly began hitting other beings like themselves with their various weapons, as they sought to fight back even without being able to see quite as well as they'd earlier been able to do. And their wild firing eventually began to help the Scouts out. For they were beginning to periodically take each other out of the fight, due to their current state or states of blindness. But it also did force the Scouts to begin dodging hostile fire again, once their multi-phasic shields began dropping again quicker than they'd been doing so a while before. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, as a typical observer might logically expect, if they ever saw such a fight in progress from a safe enough distance away, most likely

If there was at least a sixth level to the shields, it collapsed first, at its highest possible level, before it then dropped to the next level below the just-collapsed one. Eventually the shields got down to the chain level, of course, if it wasn't originally the highest possible level. And that level collapsed not long afterward, mainly due to the quite wild shots from the panicking beings that'd been hit by fire from their various companions, at least, if not also by attacks from any or all of the Scouts who were now periodically fighting against them all. The Scouts' enemies, even while they were getting even more panic-stricken in the current fight, were still somehow able to cause at least some damage, if not a lot of damage, to the Scouts' multi-phasic shields with every single hit that they managed to get on them, for some yet-known reason. Supposing, of course, that anyone else would somehow ever know that very reason, quite naturally.

The shields' chain level collapsed within about fifteen minutes after it came under attack, if it hadn't originally been the highest possible level of shielding when those shields had been erected by Peppermint some time before. That meant, of course, that the arboreal level of shields was now the highest available level of defensive protection for the Scouts, at least for a while.

While stray shots were often enough hitting the Scouts' shields, the Scouts also saw several other beings quite similar to their opponents show up in the same building, by coming out of a tunnel they'd not yet seen in their current building. And then, Peppermint said, "Oh, great. Just what we need now. Even more monsters that we have to fight here. Just lovely."

Just a few seconds or so later, then, Serenity's communicator suddenly beeped in a certain pattern that she was familiar enough with in her life. That certain pattern was made up of at least a few notes from a musical piece that Serenity had learned at the age of five or six in her life. And she'd never forgotten that piece of music, for some strange reason. These notes were from the second movement of that particular musical piece, and she'd never forgotten them ever since she'd learned them to a sufficient enough degree in her life. The specific musical piece that was now in question here had actually been composed by the Moon-born Skyhorse, as a matter of fact.

Serenity had even trained quite often to the accompaniment of that very same piece of music from the time that she first became a Sailor Scout of any kind in her life. Maybe not all the time, of course, whenever she trained as a Scout. But still enough for someone to accurately be able to say that she'd often done so in her life as a Scout, if they knew her well enough in each of their own lives.

Skyhorse was using that pattern to tell Serenity that her group, after it'd been reinforced by Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, had finished off all their current opponents in the necessary building of the town. And that she was leading them toward Serenity's current building for that town. Serenity soon learned this, through the beeps that Skyhorse was sending her, and she soon informed Moon and the rest of the Scouts who were currently with her that Skyhorse's current group of nine Scouts was heading their way to reinforce them as well.

With that done, Serenity soon tapped out a reply in another pattern of notes from the same overall musical piece, and told Skyhorse their last message to her had been received, acknowledged, and understood to a sufficient enough detail. She very briefly posted Skyhorse on the current situation that she and her fellow Scouts were now facing in their present building. She was almost immediately rewarded with a five-note sequence sent to her by Skyhorse through her communicator. Which told her that Skyhorse understood, and that she and her group would act accordingly for at least the time being. The last of the aforementioned five notes was a signing-off note to close the channel. Then Serenity closed her end of the channel as well, and put her communicator back where she'd just gotten it from, if she'd not been wearing it when Skyhorse had just beeped her on it, of course.

As she did so, Moon and the other Scouts who were now with her were periodically striking against their various opponents, whenever possible. And while they did so, they also tried not to stay in one particular place too long, if they could avoid it. Just in case the shields couldn't protect them well enough in a certain part of the building they were now in.

The arboreal level of their shields collapsed no more than a few moments after Serenity closed her channel on her communicator, due to increased levels of accuracy being shown by their current foes who'd not yet been too injured or otherwise hurt during the current battle. That meant that the fire-related level of their shields was now the highest-possible level of protection for them, in terms of their shields. And depending on what their foes were sending against that level of shields, that level of shields might last for a long while, or it might not.

The fire-level shields held at least until Skyhorse's group of Scouts arrived outside the building in question, if not even longer. Then Peppermint briefly dropped them completely, so that Skyhorse and the rest of her current group could enter the building as well to help them out as much as they possibly could help out here. Five seconds after they were far enough into the building, and after they were close enough to the rest of the currently-present Scouts in that building, Peppermint put those shields back up as much as she could. Saturn Beta got into the act of protecting all the other Scouts now present in that building by using her ability to provide an Amethyst Sailor Star Shield. Which quite effectively helped to augment the present strength of the surrounding multi-phasic shield that Peppermint had earlier erected in their part of the building.

Saturn Beta did this while Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus began to go to work on the increasing numbers of monsters that were currently rising out of the floor some distance away from them. Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus got only as close to their numerous opponents as they absolutely had to get in order to attack them, due to the increasing numbers of monsters that they were starting to have to fight here.

Skyhorse soon asked, "Does anyone have any idea where they might be coming from, in particular?"

"They're all coming out of a tunnel that we can't currently block off well enough. We're too far away from it, I think, Skyhorse," answered Peppermint. "Plus we still have others firing quite wildly all over the place, for various reasons that are too numerous to mention well enough at the current time, most likely, Skyhorse."

"Can you tell us why briefly enough, then, Peppermint?"

"Because of certain things that we've done to them, and also due to some things that they've happened to do to each other, I suppose, is the best way that I can describe it in somewhat brief detail here. I could be wrong about such things, of course. But I don't really know if I am here at all, Skyhorse."

Mercury and Jupiter teamed up to blast another monster, by Mercury using her Mini-Ice Bubbles power, and by Jupiter using a power she'd just thought of as she was entering the building that she was now in with so many other Scouts. Jupiter then called it, "Jupiter Kilo-Thunder Encircling Flashstrike," or "JK-TEF" for short.

This just-created attack for her formed what looked like a large ring of thunderbolts around a chosen opponent. And this ring looked like it was made up of at least a thousand such thunderbolts, if not more. The ring of thunderbolts would appear over the chosen opponent's head. And if that certain opponent wasn't quick enough to get away far enough from that ring before it was too late for them, that ring would then trap the opponent inside it, in very short order. When it did so at least well enough to make sure that the chosen foe would probably never be able to escape from that ring's boundaries, the ring would start to contract into an ever-shrinking circle. The more the opponent in question currently struggled, the quicker it'd contract, if possible. When the ring finally could contract no longer at the current time, that was when the Flashstrike part of the attack would happen. The Flashstrike would then essentially, or at least largely, reduce the unfortunate foe even further, if at all possible. And maybe even to mere atoms, given the right circumstances, so that no trace of them at all might ever again be detectable somehow, at least under normal enough situations, if any circumstances at all. The bolts would turn in toward the chosen enemy, and they'd strike them while flashing quite brightly, whenever they could possibly do so. Either until they'd run out of parts of them to strike or until they'd run out of sufficient energy to continue doing that, somehow. Jupiter unleashed that new attack of hers while Mercury froze the chosen enemy in place near the tunnel. And that particular opponent of theirs couldn't get away from those attacks of theirs sent toward them. Needless to say, that opponent was quite quickly reduced to mere atoms. Especially when a touch of Corona's Solar Wind Blast attack also hit that particular opponent of the Scouts here.

If any of their other opponents were also touching the unfortunate opponent at the same time that Corona's Solar Wind Blast attack also hit them, they too might have suffered the same exact fate as their now-blasted companion. And, in fact, three of their other opponents were actually in at least some physical contact with that foe of the Scouts. So, as had happened with that foe of the Scouts, they too were quite quickly reduced to mere atoms. Even if they'd not actually been hit by Jupiter's brand-new attack, they still were, because they were sharing at least some physical contact with her chosen foe. One of those other foes of the Scouts, in fact, had been exiting the tunnel at the same time that Jupiter's chosen opponent had been caught by her new attack and Mercury's Mini-Ice Bubbles power, and while Corona was using her Solar Wind Blast attack at the same time.

Seconds after all four of them had then been quite quickly reduced to mere atoms, the area of the tunnel was quite quickly abandoned by the remaining opponents of the Scouts that were still present in the building, and fighting against them. This was mainly because they didn't want to get hit by any attacks of the Scouts that might be aimed at that particular area of the building, of course. As a matter of fact, much of that particular area was now contaminated, at least to them, because of what the attacks of Mercury, Jupiter, and Corona had just done to their companions. So they all abandoned that area as quickly as they could, of course.

When they did so, many of them quite soon found themselves ambushed by Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, and Pluto Beta, at least, if nobody else as well at the same time. Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta soon ambushed them with their ball-related attacks, after first notifying all the other Scouts that they'd be doing so before they ambushed those opponents of theirs. While Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta notified all the necessary Scouts that they'd be doing so, Pluto Beta then prepared to join in the ambush that Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta were about to spring. She'd do so with her own attack, of course, when the need arose for her to do so.

She'd used this attack of hers before while training with most, if not all, of the Scouts that she knew well enough in her life, but they generally didn't yet know what she called it in English. She'd always called for it to date in a rather obscure language of Charonian origin, as a matter of fact. The only ones besides her who might normally know that particular language in the Moon Kingdom, of course, might be people from her own world's mini-system. Meaning, of course, anyone from her world, its own space stations, its own spaceships, or its own moon Charon. This, in fact, could be the very first time that she might ever call for it in a language that most, if not all, of her fellow Scouts could normally understand easily enough in their own lives.

She'd call for it, once Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta felt it was the proper time for them to spring the ambush on their chosen foes, of course. And she'd maintain it for as long as she could, for all the obvious reasons, as Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta did the same with each of their respective attacks here.

Five to ten minutes later, at the very most, then, after Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta had finished notifying all the other Scouts that they had to notify, Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, and Pluto Beta chose to spring the ambush now in question here. Uranus Beta called for her Mini-World Shaking Blast, Neptune Beta did the same for her Mini-Ball Deep Submerge, and Pluto Beta called, in English for the first time, upon her current main attack as Junior Sailor Pluto Beta. That current main attack of hers was called, when translated into English as well as it could currently be translated into it, "Pluto Black Onyxes Cascade Surround!"

This attack of hers would first form a suitably-sized cylinder or whatever other necessary shape around the opponent currently in question at any time she used it. After doing so, it would begin showering that opponent of hers with any number of black onyxes in often-cascading waves, until they were completely surrounding the opponent in question, if possible. And it'd do so, if at all possible, at least until the shape that she'd created around that opponent of hers was as full as it could possibly be, if not even longer than that. Then, if the opponent in question couldn't possibly free themselves from the mess that they were now in within about one to five minutes, at the very most, the onyxes would begin trying to extract all possible energy from them that they could, and feed it back to their controller. Which, in this particular case, was Pluto Beta, of course. After they each did so as much as they could each do that, Pluto Beta would recall that part or those parts of her attack back to herself, just before she'd generate some musical instrument out of thin air. She'd use this musical instrument to provide the final part of her attack, of course. This instrument could be of any shape, form, or design, and it could make any number of sounds, depending on how she might play it at the necessary time for her.

In this particular case, however, while Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta were attacking their opponents with any number of their attacks, Pluto Beta was attacking not only with the aforementioned onyxes, she was also preparing to call for the necessary instrument or instruments she'd need to use to finish off any or all of her own opponents. Pluto Beta caught one opponent per at least every two or three of either Uranus Beta or Neptune Beta's opponents, if not less than that, most likely. But still, Pluto Beta was proving at least as effective as Uranus Beta and Neptune Beta. For she was generally gathering more energy than she was expending, most likely, as she was attacking any number of the Scouts' opponents.

Later on, if possible, Sentinel Serenity would try to collect that energy for future use of her Scouts, and maybe even others as well. She'd try to do that with Pluto Beta's help, for all the obvious reasons. Pluto Beta would first have that extra energy stored in her own power locket's crystal. And she'd try to transfer it somehow to Sentinel Serenity's own Imperium Silver Crystal through the necessary power locket. If she could do so, Pluto Beta would eventually hand Serenity her own locket. This would be so that Serenity could try to collect a certain amount of energy from it and store it in her own locket, of course.

If Serenity could do so, she'd transfer it between the two necessary Crystals, as needed, until she'd thought that she'd taken enough energy out of Pluto Beta's own power locket. And then that energy would stay there, hopefully, at least until such time as she or any of her other Scouts would need to use any of it, if not forever.

In fact, this extra energy that Serenity might later try to collect in her own locket could possibly be the very energy that'd later allow her to try to send Serena and many others to Earth, after the end of the Moon Kingdom. Whether that was the case or not, it wasn't yet known, if it'd ever be, as a matter of fact.

It was quite often the case, as well, while the monsters were trying to dodge multiple attacks from other present Scouts anywhere in the building, that they were trapped by at least one part of Pluto Beta's current main attack as Junior Sailor Pluto Beta, if not more than one of the parts to it. And if they weren't fast enough in the necessary way or ways, it'd most likely mean curtains for them, in a manner of speaking. Which wouldn't be all that good for them, of course.

As several of the Scouts kept attacking the monsters now in question, many of the monsters fell under those attacks from the Scouts. Pluto Beta, for instance, took out at least five to ten of their opponents by herself every hour that the fight continued to rage in the building. Even while the bodies of the Scouts' opponents still continued to pile up periodically.

Eventually, the stream of reinforcements for the Scouts' current opponents ceased to flow into the building. Especially when all the other Scouts that were part of Serenity's current traveling group were finally able to enter the building still in question here. Including, of course, all the Monitors who were also Scouts at the same time.

The bodies, in some cases, even fell just mere inches from at least one, if not more than one, of the Scouts still in the building. But still the battle raged on for at least a little while longer.

Eventually, though, the still-surviving monsters could no longer withstand the combined attacks of the assembled Scouts, and they fled as quickly as they possibly could from that very building. Not all of them were somehow able to do so, however. And they fell in various areas of the building, no matter where those areas might be in it. But by the time that they could finally escape safely enough from that building, the now-dead corpses of at least 1,000 or so of their companions still remained present in the same place. An untold number of their companions had also been killed there, but no longer existed in detectable enough form, for all the obvious reasons.

After the battle finally could be considered quite over, then, Serenity and all her current companions accounted for each other as best as they could, as soon as they could do just that. This was mainly because it was still quite hard to see in the building, due to the various effects of certain Scouts' powers. Like Mercury, for example, if she could also make it harder for the Scouts' enemies to see any or all of the Scouts during a typical battle, at this particular time in her very own life. Her Mini-Ice Bubbles power could theoretically prove such a cover for herself and other Scouts, if needed, at least. That was if it wasn't actually yet known that it could surely do just that by anyone at all, even by her. Which, as a matter of fact, might not necessarily be the case here.

Mercury knew, for instance, that she could at least attack with them, if she didn't also know that she could defend with them as well. And by knowing that, she could logically expect that it might even be possible to use them to hide herself and others from hostile attacks by any number of the Scouts' opponents. For she was quite intelligent, as a matter of fact, in her life, as she'd always been, and likely would always be, if at all possible, in it.

Eventually, the building's air began to clear up well enough to allow everyone else who still lived in it to see each other. Especially after at least one door and/or window of it was opened up sufficiently well by any or all of the assembled Scouts. Including, of course, the Monitors/Scouts who were actually from Peru back on Earth, in actual reality. After it was completely cleared out and confirmed to be totally breathable by all of the necessary people and animals, Serenity accounted for all her party's human or humanoid beings completely. But only after all the Scouts' enemies that'd still remained in the building after the battle had been taken care of in all the necessary manners, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

Not long afterward, then, Luna, Artemis, and all of their traveling party's animals came to that particular building, and began to check it out rather thoroughly indeed. Many treasures and potentially useful items were soon enough found by all the assembled members of their traveling party.

Those items and treasures were quite soon afterward piled in at least one quite large pile, if not more than one, for eventual sorting by the Scouts and cats who were now in the necessary building. As were other items and treasures that'd also been collected from all the other required buildings of the town.

It took them at least a few hours, if not at least six hours, for everything to be sorted out well enough by the Scouts and the cats. But eventually, of course, they were able to do so well enough. They kept only the most important and useful items that they'd all found in the various buildings they'd just been in, if they couldn't carry everything they'd found with them as they traveled to the necessary place on Lake Kenokoa. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons.

Whatever they couldn't bring with them, they soon either buried, returned to their proper buildings, or gave away to others nearby, if it was at all possible for them to do so with those things at all. Other items and treasures that they couldn't keep or put elsewhere, they had to destroy by various means, from what they learned while sorting out all the things they'd earlier found in the required buildings of Oshajimi in the Katrelomisian Empire of Tarokauni III. They learned this from yet another scroll that was strangely written in what appeared to be at least 420 different languages at the same time. This scroll was found attached to the wall of the building that they were now all in, as a matter of fact, and it quite mysteriously unrolled itself out of a storage nook of some sort not long after the end of the battle. This scroll was about twenty feet wide and about six inches thick, as it unrolled itself out of the nook. When it'd rolled itself out onto the necessary floor area of the building, or as close to it as it could possibly get, it stretched practically from where it was attached to its wall to a line nearly to the closest wall that was definitely parallel to it in the building.

They periodically read from that scroll either as they wanted or needed to read from it, as the case might be for any or all of them. And the things that they had to destroy by various means, they all put in a certain area of the same building, as they'd been directed to do by that scroll. They did so whenever necessary, even while attending to all the things that they could either keep, give away, bury, or return to their proper places of origin, for all the obvious reasons.

Eventually, all the things that they could keep were in their things as needed. All the things that they could give away were given away to the appropriate people, as well. And the other items and treasures that were meant to be either buried or returned to their proper places of origin, before the Scouts were about to have to destroy other items and treasures by various means, were taken care of in the required manners, of course.

That left only the items and treasures marked for destruction left to be attended to, quite naturally. Not all the Scouts were needed in the area of the building designated for the elimination of the required items, so Serenity let those Scouts, whichever ones they might then be, do whatever they wanted or needed to do then in each of their lives. In fact, only the ones who were from the Moon originally were needed in that particular area. And, of course, that meant that Mini Moon, for instance, wasn't actually needed there at the current time. However, Bamboo, Calypso, Chrysalis, Cinnamon, Corona, Eclipse, Jasmine, Moon, Peppermint, Rainbow, Serenity, and Skyhorse were needed there, because of that fact about that area of the building which was now in question here.

While all the other members of their party did whatever they either wanted or needed to do at the current time, twelve Scouts went back to the necessary area of the building. When they did so, the scroll quite mysteriously rolled itself up again into its own nook just as quickly as it had unrolled itself earlier. As Serenity shut the required door behind her and eleven of her Scouts in the necessary area of the building, then, the scroll's nook closed quite securely behind the scroll as well.

Ten to fifteen minutes later, then, at most, the twelve chosen Scouts returned to where everyone else was waiting for them to return. Including, of course, Luna and Artemis. Sentinel Serenity soon enough told all her other companions exactly how those other items and treasures had been destroyed by her and the other eleven Scouts who'd then been with her. Or at least she did so to the best of her own ability to do so, if she couldn't do so completely enough at all. If any questions at all then came her way about any or all of the required means of destruction for those items and treasures, she answered them as best as she possibly could, if she couldn't do so completely enough for any or all of them, at least at the current time, if not forever.

Then Serenity and all the other members of her party who'd not yet been able to relax and/or enjoy themselves began doing so as soon as they could do just that here. And they soon enough rested, when their current situation then sufficiently enough allowed them to do so for a long enough period of time, and if they wanted or needed to do so, at the current time in each of their own mortal lives.

After resting and relaxing for at least a little while, then, all the members of Serenity's traveling party began to move again, if it wasn't already too late for them to do so at the current time. If it wasn't, they did so until it was time for them to stop for the night again. If it was, then they stayed in or near the building they'd last been fighting in somewhere in Oshajimi, for as long as they needed to stay there, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

They spent much, if not most or all, of at least the next week or so moving toward the place represented by the cobalt blue X on their map. But eventually, they all got there, just the same. And they all began waiting quite patiently for the comet that'd been mentioned in the scroll that Mercury had found some time earlier.

* * *

Well, that's another chapter down, and a little less than half the story to go, I believe, based on how long it was when I wrote this story more than fifteen years ago. It's still roughly that long, in fact. Later editing may change the length of this story, of course. But when I wrote it, the whole story was a little over 210 pages long and about 95,000 words, more or less. I do not know how many words this site will reckon its length at, once it's fully posted, just yet, for sure. However, I still expect it to reckon this story's word count at somewhere around 95 to 100 thousand words, at most, in truth.

I'd have to check at least once to be sure, but I believe there are still at least five to ten more chapters to this story, before the end of it. I will say this, however, folks. We will see many characters return very soon to the Moon of 174 BC, although just how soon, you'll all still have to read on to find out for sure, in any case.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. Hope you're all being entertained by this tale, and are enjoying it at least a little, as well, of course. TUS out.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Just a few more chapters, at most, before the Scouts and their companions all finally return to the Moon of 174 BC, for sure, folks. But how well-off will they all be, when they do? Only time will tell, of course, you know. So you'll just have to continue reading on to find out, if and when you like and can.

With no further ado, then, let's all get back to seeing what happens next for everyone on this wild and crazy adventure. I really hope you're all still quite buckled up here, because there's still quite a lot of story yet to go for us all, most definitely. TUS out.

* * *

On The Western Shore Of Lake Kenokoa

September 27, 174 BC - September 28, 174 BC

Kenokoa Beach, Katrelomisian Empire, Tarokauni III

The Scouts arrived at the place marked with an X on their map about ten or so hours, at the very most, before the expected comet was most likely due to appear again well enough in their current part of the Katrelomisian Empire. It actually had appeared for several nights already in that area, even before the currently-present Scouts and the rest of their current traveling party got there. But they'd not seen it yet, as a matter of fact. This was because they'd been too far away to see it before then.

As they'd all been moving toward the required location elsewhere in the Katrelomisian Empire, Serenity had also somehow been able to collect at least some, if not all, of the extra energy that Pluto Beta had gathered from any number of her opponents, and store it in her Imperium Silver Crystal for the later use of the Scouts. It may not have always been easy for her to do so at least once, as a matter of fact. But she was still somehow able to collect at least some, if not all, of the extra energy that Pluto Beta had earlier gathered from her opponents in the Scouts' latest major battle, just the same. And to store it in her own Imperium Silver Crystal as well, somehow.

As they were then awaiting the appearance of the expected comet, the Scouts made camp in their current location as needed. It took them at least two or three hours to make camp. They had to pitch, for instance, at least half a dozen tents, if not more than that number of tents, for example. And that was just for the human or humanoid beings, of course. Which numbered at least two dozen of them, if not more. The cats didn't need a separate tent, after some brief enough discussion between them and Serenity. And they chose to stay either with Venus or Moon, as the case might be for either of them. The Scouts pitched one large tent for their horses, and they used some curtains to divide that tent up into separate areas for each of the horses. All the necessary tents were pitched on solid ground that was mostly about thirty or so yards away from a two hundred yard-wide beach on the nearest shore of Lake Kenokoa to them, specifically on a bluff of some sort that had a really nice view of that lake and at least one large mountain on a nearby island in that same lake primarily to their east. Each tent, in fact, also had at least one panel that could be slid aside or removed to let in light from anywhere above it, if not more than one such panel.

Serenity would stay in one tent with Luna, Moon, Corona, Eclipse, Peppermint, and Mini Moon. Mercury would stay in a second with Artemis, Mars, Jupiter, Venus, and Calypso. Bamboo would stay in a third with Chrysalis, Cinnamon, Rainbow, and Jasmine. Skyhorse would stay in a fourth with the Beta-level Scouts who were actually from Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, respectively, as well. The fifth tent would have Amilaram and three of her own Monitors in it, most specifically Sierra, Paquasim, and Onziza, while the sixth one, and possibly the last one for the human or humanoids now in the Scouts' traveling party would then have Firehawk in it with Sacala, Enisangob, and Ocabirama. Another tent would serve as their mess hall area, if there could be such a thing for them at the current time during their latest adventure.

Part of the bluff in question here, as a matter of fact, even stretched out some distance over the aforementioned beach that bordered at least part of the western shore of Lake Kenokoa. There was an overhang of about ten or twenty yards, in several places, if not even more of one in any or all of them, as well. But this overhang was, or these overhangs were, each at least thirty yards, if not more, above the beach that they hung out over, in fact. So it probably wouldn't be all that wise for most, if not all, of the Scouts to jump onto the beach from them. Some cactus-like plants were even quite significantly located under that overhang, with quite numerous and quite large spikes or other similar things coming out of them. Which probably would make things very painful for most, if not all, of the Scouts, if they ever jumped or fell off that overhang or those overhangs, for any reason whatsoever.

After all the necessary tents were up and taken care of in the necessary manners, then, several, if not all, of the Scouts began taking short naps. That was only if they could do so, of course. Including, quite naturally, Moon, for all the obvious reasons.

In the relative privacy of each tent, then, each of the Scouts who chose to nap for a while could choose to also power down out of their current Scout states of being. And many, if not all, of them chose to do so, in fact. For they were really quite tired by the time that they did so.

Serenity dropped back one power level, to her Royal Serenity state of being, if she'd not already done so by then. And she chose to stay awake, as Moon dropped back to her normal non-Scout state of being. Corona soon became blind again, of course, when she dropped back to being just Destiny. And Eclipse became deaf again, when she dropped back to being just Bethany again in her life. Peppermint dropped back to her own non-Scout state of being as Margaret Calumet. And Super Sailor Mini Moon dropped back two power levels to her own non-Scout state of being as Rini Shields, as well.

Serena Moon said, "Mother, I think it's time that Destiny, Bethany and I get some rest now, if possible. For if we're going to have to watch for a comet later on, I think we'll need to be quite rested, if we can be, by the time it shows up here for us."

"Understood, Serena. Rest then, if you feel that you three have to, and I'll let you all know if and when anything of sufficient enough importance begins to happen around here."

"Thank you, Mother." It then took no more than another minute or so for all three of Serenity's daughters who were currently present in the tent to fall asleep, and do so quite soundly. That soon left only Serena's future daughter, her own mother, and her own maternal grandmother still awake and conscious in their tent, of course.

After Rini watched her future mother, Destiny, and Bethany go to sleep again, she asked, "Royal Sailor Serenity, how do you think we'll be able to get back to our respective time periods eventually?"

"I have no idea at all, Rini. But I trust that the Lord of all Creation will provide a way for us all to do just that. I do think that you miss your mother very much back where you come from, however."

"Yes, I suppose that you might say that. I miss her greatly, as a matter of fact, back where I come from. Do you miss your own mother, as well, by any chance at all?"

"Yes, I do, as a matter of fact. But in my very own time, I believe that she might very well already be in the Celestial Palace of the Celestial City, Rini. That's if I'm not too mistaken about such a thing here, of course."

Margaret asked, "And if she's there, Serenity, what do you miss the most about her, if I may ask?"

"The stories that she used to tell me as we each often attended balls with each other, I think. She used to tell me stories of Sailor Scouts from long-ago times, and I really liked hearing stories that had to do with Sailor Chrysalis and/or Sailor Calypso, whenever possible. I really miss those stories she used to tell me of those Scouts, as a matter of fact. If I'm not mistaken too much here, however, the times of those respective stories haven't yet come to either or both of them in their lives. For they both seem to be at least a little younger than they each were in those particular stories that my dear departed mother used to tell me of either or both of them. I suppose that in order for those stories to be told to me again at least once more, then, we'll all have to get back to our respective time periods. Granted, I may not be able to see my own Mother again once I go back to my own time period, if I can do that somehow. But I accept that very possibility, just the same."

"And if you can't, then what, Royal Sailor Serenity?" asked Rini.

"So be it, then, Rini. Things don't always work out, just as they might be hoped for, in a person's life. So a person has to try to deal with whatever may actually come their way in it to the best of their ability to do so, whenever the need arises for them to do so. Take, for instance, if they have to fight any number of strange beings in their lives. Earlier, I wasn't planning to have to fight during this current adventure of ours. Or at least I wasn't originally planning to, anyway."

"But when we had to, then what did you do, Serenity?" asked Rini.

"I began trying to formulate a sufficiently workable plan to help us all out as much as possible, Rini. I didn't know exactly how we'd be able to fight them, of course. But I still tried to come up with such a plan."

"And did your plan work out well enough, Royal Sailor Serenity?"

"With some necessary modifications, of course, it eventually did so, Rini. It didn't work out exactly as I'd originally planned for it to, mainly due to the strength of our various opponents, whoever they might have then been, especially in the last building. But it still worked eventually, somehow, after all the necessary modifications had then been made to it, Rini."

"And if you have to improvise again in the future, then what?"

"I'll do so, Rini. I'd do almost anything for those who I care for in my life, no matter what it might be. Especially my children, husband, and/or brother, I think."

"Even if it means your death, Royal Sailor Serenity?"

"Yes, even if it means my death, Rini. And if I'm not mistaken too much here in my own life, it may very well do so, someday, as a matter of fact, Rini."

"I've heard at least once in my life from my own mother that you'd be willing to sacrifice your Moon Kingdom for her future and the futures of so many others, if the need ever arose for you to do so."

"And what has she told you at that time or those times, Rini?"

"That in her past, or at least one of them, if not in her only one, you did just that somehow in your own life. You used the power of the Imperium Silver Crystal to save her and so many others from a state of permanent enough death, if I remember that time or those times well enough here in my life."

"And I died?"

"You at least fell asleep, if you didn't die instead, Royal Sailor Serenity," answered Rini.

"And those I saved, Rini?"

"They were sent to the distant future, in a fervent hope that they'd all have reasonably pleasant and peaceful lives, of course."

"And if they were sent there, did they do so well enough, Rini?"

"I don't know about all of them, of course. But at least some of them didn't have such lives, in actual reality. For they often had to fight when they didn't really want to have to do that, Royal Sailor Serenity. Or if they didn't feel that they were in good enough condition to do so somehow, as well."

Margaret asked Rini, "What did your mother say about those particular people that Serenity actually saved who weren't able to do as she might have hoped they'd be able to do, somehow?"

"She said that they fought as needed, whenever they possibly could do so. Even if they didn't really want to do that. And they did so, Princess Margaret, no matter how many times they might have lost any of their various battles before."

"Like how?" asked Margaret.

"Like apparently being killed or put to sleep somehow, I think, if I'm not too mistaken here, Princess Margaret," answered Rini.

"And if they were apparently killed, then how were they still able to fight periodically after getting themselves in trouble like that?"

"Apparently, if they actually had the Imperium Silver Crystal with, or near enough to, them, and God saw fit to make it possible somehow, they weren't actually killed, but they were just put to sleep somehow for a time, Princess Margaret."

"I see, Rini. And could your own mother be one of those people that might have been saved by God in the necessary enough manners at least once before in her life or lives?"

"I believe so, as a matter of fact, Princess Margaret. If that's so, though, I don't know exactly how God and the Imperium Silver Crystal did so. For I don't totally know exactly how the Imperium Silver Crystal and God do that kind of thing, at least, if not anything else as well, at the current time in my life. If I ever will know how they might do so in actual reality, that is."

Margaret thought about this information for a short period of time, as she looked around the tent at everyone else in it at least briefly, if not at great length. Then she looked right at Luna.

Luna saw this, and then asked Margaret, "What's on your mind right now, Princess Margaret?"

"I'm thinking that you seem quite familiar to me, at the current time. But I don't quite know exactly where from, Luna."

"I don't remember seeing you before either." Luna thought, after saying that aloud, "Or at least not at this time in your life, Princess Margaret, we've not yet met, I think."

"Then why do we seem quite familiar to each other, if what I can tell from that last statement of yours is accurate enough here, Luna?"

"Maybe back where you come from, you have at least one cat of your own who looks at least a little like me, Princess Margaret," answered Luna.

"Come to think of it, you remind me of one or more of them, Luna. Do you know any cats by the name of Apollo and/or Iris, for example?"

"Once upon a time I did, but no longer, at least as of the current time in my own life, Princess Margaret?"

"What happened to them, if I may ask you this, Luna?"

"They were lost aboard a spaceship, Princess Margaret."

"Serenity told me, at least once, if not more than once, that her parents were lost aboard a spaceship with a whole lot of cats and many other people. Could your parents have also been aboard at the exact same time that her parents were on that ship, Luna?"

"Yes, I believe that I can tell you that they were, Princess Margaret. Can't I, Serenity?"

"Yes, you can. In fact, I think that you just did so, Luna," answered Royal Sailor Serenity.

"If I ever saw your parents, would I likely recognize them, Luna?" asked Princess Margaret.

"If the need ever arose for you to do so?" asked Luna.

"Yes, Luna. That's what I mean."

"I do really believe that you'd actually do so somehow, Princess Margaret. Though exactly how, I don't really know yet, I think, in my own life. Supposing that I ever will know that someday, of course, if I don't already know that in my own life, in fact."

Just then, Destiny suddenly unzipped her sleeping bag by feel, and she arose from where she'd been lying down, as she also woke up. As she did all three of those things, Royal Sailor Serenity soon quickly picked up a cord near where she'd been lying down, and soon quite adeptly tied it between her daughter's nearest wrist and her own nearest wrist. Which, in this case, meant that Serenity tied the cord one-handed between her own right wrist and Destiny's own left wrist. With that done, Serenity soon said to her future mother and/or to Luna, "I really think that I'd better attend to Destiny for at least a little while, if not even longer. For it seems that both Serena and Bethany are still quite asleep. And whenever Destiny's blind like she now is, she often needs someone with her, for all the obvious reasons. I'll return as soon as I can with her, of course. In the meantime, please watch over Rini and my two daughters who are still asleep in our tent, Princess Margaret. Luna, I want you to stay with them too, please."

"Understood," said both Princess Margaret and Luna together. Then Serenity led her daughter Destiny out of their tent. Destiny then asked her mother to bring her to the mess hall tent. For she was hungry and thirsty again for a while. Serenity agreed to do so, of course.

Moments later, then, both of them were in that mess hall area, and preparing to have some sandwiches, which Serenity was now making for them, for all the obvious reasons. For Destiny, Serenity made three sandwiches with ham and cheddar cheese in them. While for herself, she made one sandwich of peanut butter and grape jelly, one of tuna and cream cheese, and one with bacon, lettuce, and three tomato slices in it. Serenity put all their sandwiches as needed on two different plates. While next to her, Destiny retrieved two reasonably cold bottles of milk out of some sort of ice chest their traveling party had found earlier as they'd been moving toward where they were now, if they'd not already had it when they'd been brought to the world that they were all now on.

Then, once the chosen drinks and the chosen sandwiches were all ready for their consumption to a sufficient enough degree, Serenity led them both over to a large rock that was about waist-height for her, at least, if not also for her daughter. This rock would serve them as a table, as a matter of fact, while other rocks sufficiently near it could serve them as chairs of a sort. Once Destiny was in the necessary location on one of those rocks, then, Serenity set down their sandwiches in the necessary places. And she took one of the bottles of milk from her daughter for herself, of course. With that then done, Serenity soon untied the cord connecting her tied wrist to that of her daughter's. And she set it to one side of her, but still somewhat in front of her.

After doing so, she then said, "Destiny, your sandwiches and milk are now in your hands, or they're now in front of you on a large rock."

Destiny then reached toward her mother with her free hand and wrist. Which, in this particular case, in fact, were her just-untied left ones. She felt around until she touched her plate of sandwiches. And she found a sufficiently large enough area for her to set down her own bottle of milk in next to her sandwiches. Then Destiny set down her own milk for a time, of course.

After doing that, Destiny soon said, "Mother, I hope that we can get back to our own time period again."

"So do I, Destiny. Do you have any special reason why, if I may ask you this here?" Serenity asked this here, just as she then picked up her tuna and cream cheese sandwich and Destiny did the same for one of her ham and cheddar cheese sandwiches.

"Solomon, for one." Both of them then began eating their sandwiches in very short order.

"You miss him very much," said Serenity, when she saw a somewhat sad expression flash across her daughter's face. Even though Destiny was now quite blind, for all the obvious reasons.

"Yes, I do, Mother. Do you think we'll have at least enough time to be boyfriend and girlfriend, if not even more, to each other for a while before you try to save us for the future?" Destiny then opened her own bottle of milk just by feel, and she brought it quite easily enough to her lips with her left hand. By the time that her mother then spoke again, she was already drinking some of her milk.

"I don't really know what to think about such a thing right now, Destiny. I wish I did, of course, but I don't. I would like to see you have a boyfriend, if at all possible, before the end of the Moon Kingdom, Destiny. But you may not have that ability by then, if what I remember of any number of my dreams and/or visions is sufficiently accurate in its complete enough nature. Serena and other members of her crowd might by then, if they're somehow old enough to do so. But if they're not, then that's the way things will be, it seems. Even if those other people might not really like such an idea being true enough for them somehow. Including you and Bethany, if not also Solomon and Renaldo, of course, Destiny."

"Why will you save us, if you can, and you feel the need to try to do so, then, Mother?" Destiny then set her milk back down again for a little while, so that she might be able to hold one of her sandwiches with both of her hands, at the very least, if nothing else as well at the same time.

"Because I am not only your mother, but also your Queen."

"Not just because of Serena and Darien?" Destiny then took a bite from her current sandwich, just as Royal Sailor Serenity took a sip from her own now-open bottle of milk.

"Not just because of them, Destiny. Granted, seeing them quite possibly being killed by my mortal enemy might be too much for me. But I won't just save as many of you as I can because of Serena and Darien, Destiny. By then, you might even have been killed, or at least rendered unconscious, by at least one, if not more, of our enemies. But maybe you won't. I don't really know yet, if I'll ever know, in my life, whether that'll be true for any or all of the rest of you. But if my dreams and/or visions that pertain sufficiently well to either Serena or Darien, if not both, are sufficiently true in their nature, then the potential loss of either or both of them will somehow cause me to sacrifice my Kingdom and quite possibly even myself for as many of you as I can possibly save for the future."

"If so, then will you miss us?"

"For as much longer as I might live, if I'm still alive then, Destiny?" She asked this as she saw Destiny take another sip of her own milk, and just before she took a bite from her own tuna and cream cheese sandwich.

"Yes, that's what I mean, Mother."

"I probably will, Destiny. This, of course, would be for all the obvious reasons. Listen to me, Destiny. If I can't somehow actually have as many of you around me as possible, then I don't want to rule the Moon Kingdom any longer in my life. I'd really prefer to have as many of you as possible around me more than I would really prefer to rule the Moon Kingdom without as many of you around me as possible."

"Because we mean just too much to you, Mother?"

"You might say that, Destiny."

"You'd send us into a different time period, if you could, where we'd most likely not be able to remember you or the Moon Kingdom?"

"If I felt the need, and if I could do so somehow, I'd gladly do so, Destiny. Sure, I might not like doing so, for all the obvious reasons. But I'd still do so, if I had to, in order to save as many of you as I could." Serenity then took another sip of milk from her own bottle.

"Why would you trap us in your Crystal, instead of using it to eliminate our enemies?" Destiny finished her first sandwich, and then reached for her second one.

"Because if I did, I'd not be able to save those of you who they'd killed, or at least rendered unconscious, from a state of permanent enough death, somehow, Destiny."

"Like Serena and Darien, for example?"

"Yes, like them, for instance." Serenity finished her tuna and cream cheese sandwich, just as Destiny then finished her milk. And then Serenity reached for her peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich.

"You really care for them both a whole lot?"

"Of course I do, Destiny."

"And why will you not be able to completely seal them, meaning our enemies, away for good, if I remember enough of your dreams and/or visions well enough?"

"My sorrow, I think, will make it somehow impossible for me to completely seal away our enemies once and for all, Destiny. They'll show up again sometime in the future, if that's so. And those that I've somehow saved by then will probably have to fight them again at least once more in their lives, I'm sure, if that's true enough."

"Including Serena, perhaps?" Destiny then literally wolfed down the rest of her current sandwich, as her mother also finished her own milk.

"I'm afraid so, Destiny."

"Do you like the idea of them possibly having to do so then, Mother?"

"Of course not. But if the Negaverse reappears in whatever time period I'm able to send as many of you into as I can, then someone will quite naturally have to fight them again, for all the obvious reasons, Destiny. Even if that means that my dear Serena has to fight again, someone will have to fight them again, if they ever reappear anywhere else in time."

"Are we as dear to you as Serena is, or the rest of her crowd?"

"Of course you are, I believe, Destiny. Never doubt that. You are blood of my blood, and flesh of my flesh. Granted, you're not my oldest child, Destiny. And neither is Bethany. But I still care for you at least as much as I do her, or at least I think and hope that I do. I think and hope that the same thing is true for all the rest of you who are now also part of her crowd, even if you're not all blood of my blood, and flesh of my flesh."

"But she's the Moon Princess, Mother."

"So she is, Destiny. So she is. But I still love you all very much, whether or not you're all biologically part of me in your lives, just the same. And it'll still hurt me very much to lose any or all of you, as a matter of fact. Do you remember when you all faced the drones that went haywire?"

"Yes, at least vaguely I do, I think."

"Well, there was a certain length of time after that when I wasn't quite sure that any or all of you would somehow survive easily enough in your lives as Scouts."

"Like Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus, at least, if not any of the rest of us as well, Mother?"

"Yes. But if it hadn't been for Eclipse, at least, I might not have been able to save any or all of you, Destiny."

"You mean, of course, Bethany."

"Yes. She, as Eclipse, used some emergency beacons to summon me to where you all were fighting against those screwed-up drones of ours back on the grounds of the Rainbow Springs Palace."

"And you were able to save us, with a lot of help from Junior Sailor Moon, at least."

"Correct. As I will always try to do as best as I possibly can, for as long as I can. Even if I must sacrifice my Kingdom and my life to possibly save the lives of as many of you as I can possibly save somehow. You have my word on that, Destiny. And you know my word is good by now, I'm quite sure, Destiny."

"Yes, I do, Mother," said Destiny as her mother finished her own second sandwich. And she said this just as she began to eat her own last ham and cheddar cheese sandwich. That then, of course, left only her own mother Serenity with a still-uneaten sandwich, for all the obvious reasons.

As Serenity was trying to think of a suitable comment to add to their current conversation, and watching Destiny begin eating her last sandwich, Calypso suddenly appeared near them both. When Serenity saw this, she asked Calypso, "What's going on, Calypso?"

"I wanted to get some fresh air for a little while, Serenity. It seemed to me that the air was possibly getting a little too stale for me in my tent. I don't know why, exactly. But it still seemed to me that the air was doing that somehow, a little while ago."

"Then who's staying awake there in your tent, at least while you're away from it, Calypso?"

"Mercury is, while everyone else is resting for a while. Is this girl your daughter, Serenity?"

"Yes, she is. I think you've been told that before by now. But if not, then I'm telling you now here. Her name is Destiny, in either case, Calypso."

"She appears quite blind at the moment."

"That's because she is, Calypso. She always is whenever she's not in her Sailor Scout state of being as Corona. Eclipse is always deaf whenever she's not in her own Sailor Scout state of being, and whenever she's just Bethany Moon, in her life, as well."

"Do you two mind if I sit down near you both?"

"No, I suppose not, Calypso," answered Destiny, once Calypso had let Destiny touch her face for the obvious enough reasons. "Please sit down near us, then, if you wish to."

"All right, I will do so, then, Destiny." Calypso then did as requested of her by Destiny, as Serenity began eating her last sandwich as well.

"Calypso, would you care to play us some music, if you don't mind doing so here?" asked Serenity.

"If I do so, don't you think that might possibly wake up everyone else in very short order?" responded Calypso, in like manner.

"Maybe so, but I still think that you might consider playing some music just the same."

"I think it would be best, at least for a little while longer, for me not to do so, because several members of our party seem to be quite tired yet here. Maybe if they start arising again within an hour or so, I might reconsider that particular idea. But right now, I don't really think that it'd be very wise for me to play any music or sing for a while."

Calypso then talked for at least a little while longer with both Destiny and Serenity here. Even while they were still awaiting the arrival of the comet they and the rest of their party was now expecting to eventually see, she did so here. Meaning at least two or three hours, if not even longer than that. They talked more about themselves, whenever possible. And they wondered exactly how they'd actually be able to return to the Moon as at least one scroll that their party had found had said that they would. Of course, they didn't yet know exactly how they'd be able to do that at all with themselves and the rest of their current traveling party, but they still hoped that they'd somehow find that out soon enough, when the proper time came for them to know that. This was quite naturally for all the obvious reasons, at least, if not for any other logical enough reasons as well at the same time.

Serenity finished her last sandwich no more than ten to fifteen minutes, at most, after Calypso joined her and her daughter in the mess hall tent for their traveling party. And just as she did so, Calypso asked her fellow Scout Royal Sailor Serenity, "How much longer do you think that we'll have to wait for that comet to appear, Serenity?"

"I really don't know, as a matter of fact." Then the three of them continued their current conversation for at least a little while longer, as already stated here, about whatever things that came to any or all of their minds. Supposing that they could discuss any or all of those particular things, of course, while they were still carrying on their current conversation with each other.

After quite a bit of time had passed for all three of them in their current situation, they were eventually joined in the mess hall area of their camping location by several of the other members of their current traveling party. Specifically, they were joined there by Moon, Mini Moon, Eclipse, Luna, Peppermint, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and Artemis, in that particular order. All the other Scouts hadn't yet joined them there, however. When Serenity saw that several other members of their party had shown up there in their respective Sailor Scout states of being, she asked Destiny, "Destiny, would you like to become Corona again now? Several of the other members of our party are back in their respective Sailor Scout states of being now. And would you like to see them again here?"

"Fine, Mother. I'll power up, then." Destiny then stood up, and she backed away from the rock that she'd been sitting on for a while, with some obviously-needed guidance being provided where needed to her by either Calypso or her mother, if not both. When she felt that she was far enough away from that rock, she transformed into her own Sailor Scout state of being as Junior Sailor Corona.

Several seconds later, at most, she looked around herself again, for all the obvious enough reasons. And she then saw her plate and bottle still sitting where she'd last put them both some length of time before. She then picked up both empty bottles and both plates that she and her mother had earlier used during their latest meal. And she put them both in a medium-sized basin of some sort. This was so that they could be washed later on, if possible, by someone who was now in their traveling party, of course.

With that done, Corona asked Moon, "Where are the rest of the Scouts in our traveling party?"

"Still in their tents, it seems," answered Moon.

"Who wants to bring them to the rest of us, then?"

"I'll do it, Corona," said Calypso. Not more than fifteen or so minutes later, then, Calypso then returned with the rest of the now-present Scouts, of course.

All the Scouts who were also Monitors stood reasonably near each other in the party's mess hall tent, while Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus stood near Moon, Corona, Eclipse, and Serenity. Mini Moon stood near Pluto Beta, Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, and Saturn Beta, at the same time, once all the Scouts were in the same tent. Luna sat on Royal Sailor Serenity's left shoulder. While Artemis sat on the opposite shoulder of Venus. Chrysalis stood in a cluster of Scouts with Calypso, Peppermint, Bamboo, and the rest of the other assembled Scouts, as well.

Serenity accounted for all of her Sailor Scouts. After she did so well enough to suit her sufficiently well, she walked out of the mess hall tent in very short order, as a matter of fact. Everyone else quite naturally followed her out of it, and went to wherever she went next, or at least as close to it as they could, of course.

She soon climbed up on a large rock rather easily, without the use of any equipment at all, in fact. After she did so, she then told Calypso to take out her saxophone, Mercury to take out her flute, and Neptune Beta to take out her violin. Then she told Mars to sing whatever came to her mind as the three just-named Scouts played their instruments, while also assuring Mars that she herself would sing as well at the same time.

Calypso withdrew her saxophone from a sack that she had slung over her own back. While Mercury did the same with a flute in another sack that she was carrying then, and while Neptune Beta was taking a violin out of a third similar sack that was on her back as well. All three of those Scouts were soon tuning and preparing their own instruments in the required manners, as a matter of fact. Mars also began preparing to sing, at the very same time, by briefly practicing her various musical scales to at least some degree, if not to a great degree. Serenity listened for a few moments to the chosen Scouts' preparations of a musical enough nature, as she too prepared at least in a mental sense, if not in any other senses as well, to provide some musical accompaniment to the required Scouts of hers. This was for the obvious reasons, at least, if not also any other reasons, as a matter of simple enough fact right here and right now, of course.

When all four of the other Scouts that she'd chosen to provide music for everyone else were sufficiently ready to do so, they soon told her that they were, of course. Serenity looked at each of them, very briefly, in fact. And then she looked at the horizon that the comet would first be visible to them over, before she soon said, "Everyone, please find somewhere reasonably safe to sit or stand, if you can, for the obvious enough reasons, at least. Mercury, you'll need to jump up on the rock that's closest to me on my left. Neptune Beta, you're to stand on the next one to her, on Mercury's left side, then. Mars, you then are to take the next one after that. You'll need to be on Neptune Beta's left side in a five-rock circle formation here. Calypso, you will then need to take the one that is closest enough to me on my right side, before we can start either playing or singing here and now."

All four of those Scouts soon climbed up onto each of the necessary rocks, just as they'd been directed to do by Royal Sailor Serenity. And they waited to see what she'd want them to do next. The sky soon began to darken, because it was now getting quite close to local nightfall and/or sunset, in fact, if not both of those things.

But still, they waited, for the comet was at least ten or so minutes from becoming even the slightest bit visible in the skies that were close enough to him. It was, in fact, still below the horizon that was directly opposite the one that it'd later sink under in their traveling party's very own presence.

The assembled Scouts and cats still waited, especially for the ones that were now either standing or sitting on large rocks in the area. Five minutes, at most, before the comet was most likely due to start appearing near their party of travelers, Serenity, who by now had powered back up to her Sentinel Serenity state of being as a Scout, finally said, "Calypso, start playing your saxophone, right now, just as you feel the need to play it here. Neptune Beta, thirty seconds later, and exactly thirty seconds later only, after Calypso does so, start playing, in like manner. Mercury, thirty seconds after Neptune Beta begins to play her violin, begin playing your flute in like manner. Mars, you start singing thirty seconds later, then, just as your mind leads you. I will then join in singing with you thirty seconds later, of course."

Calypso then nodded at Sentinel Serenity, almost immediately after Serenity said all those things here and now. Serenity then very briefly smiled at Calypso, before she too nodded in return. With that done, Calypso wasted no more time in beginning to play her own saxophone. She started out with long and low notes, just before she began to include several shorter and higher-pitched notes in her music. She soon had established a beat quite like that of the kind of music that shared its name with that of her Sailor Scout state of being, if not entirely like it.

Exactly thirty seconds after Calypso began playing her saxophone as the need arose for her to do so, Neptune Beta began playing her violin with the exact same beat pattern that Calypso was now using. She played notes that were reasonably agreeable with those that Calypso was currently playing, of course. When Calypso needed at least one certain note, if not more than one of them, to be played by Neptune Beta, she tried to let Neptune Beta know that ahead of time by playing certain other notes a few notes before she'd need Neptune Beta to play them or similar enough notes, whenever possible. Fortunately enough for all concerned, Neptune Beta didn't miss any of those signals to her from Calypso, whenever they came to her here.

Mercury then joined in with Neptune Beta and Calypso exactly when she needed to do that, of course. She too started out playing whatever notes struck her fancy to play then, before she began following the cues that Calypso had just begun sending her through Neptune Beta's own playing of notes. Neptune Beta passed along cues from Calypso to Mercury periodically through her playing of notes.

Exactly thirty seconds after Mercury began playing her flute, Mars then began singing a song that told at least part of a legend that she'd learned from the time she was just a few weeks of age, back on Mars. This legend of hers told of certain people that'd been around at and around the time that Mars had originally joined the Moon Kingdom, and certain events that'd taken place at the same time. Several of the Scouts now present knew to a sufficient enough degree about such events in their lives, or at least enough to allow Mars to sing about such things here.

Thirty seconds later after Mars began singing, Serenity then began telling the Moon Kingdom side of such events and people, just as needed, by singing here. Serenity did this while Calypso, Neptune Beta, and Mercury also continued to play certain notes as the need arose for them each to do so.

By the time that Calypso had played her saxophone for about five minutes, more or less, the first glimmers of the expected comet started becoming visible by all the assembled Scouts and cats. The comet rose in the skies above everyone's head until it was directly over the midpoint of the five-rock formation that Serenity and four of her Scouts were now situated on here. It stayed in such a position for a period of exactly one Terran hour, before then starting to move again. It then proceeded to move toward the necessary horizon just as quickly as it had moved from the opposite one right after it'd first appeared once again.

Of course, the music still continued to be played and sung as needed as it moved, or stayed stationary, in the skies above everyone's head, for all the obvious reasons. Finally, it began sinking below the required horizon, after having been visible in the skies above for a period of at least six or so hours, if not even longer than that.

The required Scouts continued to play on, just the same, as it did so. And they actually seemed to be serenading it by the time that it began sinking below the appropriate horizon, as a matter of fact. They'd not been doing so when it first began to appear near enough to them and the rest of their party, actually. But by the time that it began disappearing from their view, they seemed to be doing just that, in fact, to the rest of their current traveling party here.

They played and sung at least until the very faintest view of the comet could no longer be seen by any of the members of their party, to a sufficient enough degree, if not even longer than that, of course. And they also did so until Serenity finally allowed them to stop doing so. Serenity, in fact, kept them singing and playing their instruments until about ten minutes or so after the last glimmers of the comet had finally vanished from sight to a sufficient enough degree. By this time, then, the five Scouts in question here had either been singing or playing their instruments for a period of not less than six, and not more than ten, hours in a row, as a matter of fact.

When Serenity let them stop singing and playing their instruments, it was still no more than about forty or so minutes before the next part of their adventure would make itself known to them and the rest of their party, of course. That next part of their current adventure, as a matter of actual fact, would have to deal with a gold cross that'd suddenly appear directly above all their heads.

As they all awaited the appearance of the aforementioned cross, everyone stowed away their instruments, or they shut up, as was now needed or desired by each of them here. Mercury stored away her flute, Neptune Beta stashed her violin away, and Calypso put her saxophone back, exactly where each of them needed to do so for each of their own musical instruments. Mars and Serenity quite soon became very quiet, in fact, as they periodically looked at the rest of their current traveling party's members who were sitting or standing near the rocks they were still finding themselves on here. They were so quiet, in fact, that it was quite apparent to every other sentient being who was now present with them that they were both in quite deep thought about at least one thing, if not more than one, in each of their lives. Whether or not it was actually true for either of both of them, that was what was presently apparent about Mars and Serenity to the rest of their sentient companions.

As had been earlier predicted in a previously-found scroll, then, the expected cross quite suddenly appeared exactly where it'd been predicted to appear in that very scroll. It stayed directly over their heads for a period of three Terran hours, in fact. As it did so, a bridge then started to become visible leading from the bluff that they'd camped out on straight toward the island that had the nearby mountain on it. This bridge appeared to them as if it came out of thin enough air, as well. It appeared to be quite like the Golden Gate Bridge that'd eventually be built in and around the future American city of San Francisco, if at all possible. But not entirely, in fact. For instead of it being a bridge made of steel and concrete, at least, if nothing else as well at the same time, it consisted primarily of light, if not entirely of it. It was thirty yards wide, and two thousand feet high from its main level to the top of its primary structure. It was also 10.625 Terran statute miles long, exactly, from where it was anchored to the nearest part of the Scouts' bluff to where it was attached to the necessary part of the mountain on the nearby island. The bridge was perfectly level, in any case at all here, when it finished becoming completely visible to everyone else who was sufficiently near it.

Under the quite bright light that the gold cross in the skies above was then providing, Serenity had several, if not all, of her assembled Scouts quite quickly begin to strike their camp's tents. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, at least. And she watched the cross above as they did so. With very little, if any, unnecessary wasting of time by everyone else in her party, as the required Scouts struck their camp, Serenity watched her Scouts work. And she wondered exactly how they'd be all able to get back to the Moon somehow.

* * *

I estimate there are about five or so more chapters left for me to post of this story here, before it can be called complete. And possibly more than that. However I don't expect there to be many more chapters seeing as we're about two-thirds of the way through it, if my math is correct enough here. The Scouts should be returning to the Moon within another chapter or two, and then we can begin winding this story up, once they get back there well enough, I think.

There are at least one or two more long chapters left in this story, if not more. I hope to have all remaining chapters of this story posted by no later than the end of Thursday for this week, if at all possible, and begin posting _Operation Cocoon One_ within 24 to 48 hours after the last chapter for this story is posted. The next volume of this story series should be roughly as long as this story is, I think. Before I start posting _Operation Cocoon One_ , though, I would strongly recommend that you all also read Books I through IV for this series, even Book III, for Sylvia will likely play a major role in relation to the more important events of it and in the volume immediately following it, at least. And so might Rolando, for that matter. Not only that, they may both play major roles in many future stories in this story series as well, come to think of it.

Until next time, then, folks, I'll close this. Hope you've all enjoyed this adventure so far, and have often been entertained by it at least a little, of course. TUS out.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

I notice many of you may not be reading all the other chapters for previous volumes of this series. If that is true, then I strongly recommend that you do so, so that you might be able to better follow along with the course of its related timeline or timelines. For otherwise, you might miss something along the way, as the events of the timeline occur. Reading all the existing chapters will hopefully help you all better understand where things have been, why things are as they are now in this story, and where things likely will go, as this series develops, folks.

Especially when it comes to the main characters in it, such as Serena, her sisters Destiny and Bethany, and others, for example. We will also see quite a bit more of Sylvia and Rolando in this series as well, among various others, for sure. And we will see more of the Scouts' special friends, as well, who we have already seen in this story series.

But before that happens, we will have to get everyone now on Tarokauni III back to the Moon, even if it's only the Moon of 174 BC at this point in time with this story. That will happen in this chapter, as a matter of fact. But there will still be a good amount of this story left, by the end of this chapter. And if my math is correct enough here, six or seven more chapters to post, after this one. Including at least with more fighting, before this story finally ends here.

With no further ado, then, let's see how the Scouts and their current companions manage to get back to the Moon of 174 BC, okay? Until later, I'll close this. TUS out.

* * *

On Or Near A Bridge Of Light

September 28, 174 BC

Kenokoa Beach, Katrelomisian Empire, Tarokauni III

By the time that the cross then began fading from Serenity's view at least to a noticeable enough extent for her, at least, the Sailor Scouts' camp was completely struck. And everyone else besides her in the party had begun to move toward the necessary bridge, after she'd told them all to begin do so. She told Chrysalis, Calypso, and Peppermint to watch one end of their party's group, and Skyhorse, Rainbow, and Jasmine to do the same for the others. Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus were to watch their left side. While Moon, Corona, Eclipse, and Mini Moon were to do the same for their right side. Her Beta-level Scouts were to protect their party from any possible attacks that might come from anywhere above the heads of their traveling party's members. Everyone else was to watch for any possible attacks that came from directions below them. Or they were to help out any of the other Scouts as situations might then require them to do so. She also told everyone to expect her to fly for a time over their heads to scope out their general location, through Moon.

When Moon and Mini Moon asked exactly how and why she might be able to do that, she said, "Girls, I can't tell you that right here. For it falls into the category of things I can't share with you right now, at least, if I'll ever be able to do that eventually. But do expect me to do somehow just as I've said for you all to expect here and now, Junior Sailor Moon and Super Sailor Mini Moon."

"Understood, Sentinel Serenity," responded Moon, seconds later, for all the other members of their traveling party. Then Serenity saw all her Scouts arrange themselves quite quickly as she'd just directed them to arrange themselves now. She waited until the first of the members of her traveling party began stepping onto the bridge of light, and then jumped off her rock, if she'd not already done so by then. She returned to their now-struck camp's bluff. And she paced off a certain number of paces, so that she could quite hopefully have a good enough idea of how much room she might then have available to her before she'd have to take flight, somehow, into the air. The cross still stayed visible to her, at least, if not to anyone else in her party as well. But it was still fading from view, just the same, here.

She quite quickly cleared an area that was at least six feet wide, and at least eight hundred feet long, of any possible debris that might cause her any conceivable enough trouble as she made her take-off run toward the area of the bridge, for the obvious reasons. And she did so rather quickly, in fact. It was completely clear of such debris within two minutes after the first Scout's stepping onto the bridge in question here. Whether or not it'd been that way before, it now was that way, within two minutes of Skyhorse's first stepping onto the bridge.

She then very briefly ducked into a nearby cave of sorts, and she called upon a certain power of hers that she'd used very rarely to date in her own life. For it'd often take quite a bit of her energy and/or strength for her to be able to use it periodically in her life, in fact. She might also not be able to use that certain power of hers again for a certain length of time afterward, once she returned it to its normal inactive state of being.

This power was quite similar to the power that Moon and Mini Moon might later have when they either wanted or needed to fly in the future, if it wasn't the exact same one in actual reality. She'd call for it, however, by saying "Celestial Wings, Activate!" as loudly as she could, without letting anyone else who was sufficiently sentient nearby hear it. Except for God, of course. If she could do this sufficiently well, at least two rather large and rather usable wings would soon enough appear just as if they'd just come out of thin air on the back of her current Sailor Scout uniform, somehow, whichever uniform it might actually be for her at such times as she might ever call for that power of hers.

She called upon that power. And once she felt those very same wings materializing on her uniform's back, she stepped out of the cave that she'd just stepped into briefly. By the time that she was five feet or so away from that cave, then, her wings were completely materialized and in the necessary orientations on her back. Two of those wings looked like multi-colored butterfly wings. While two of them looked like angels' wings in any number of artworks from any time in the Universe's own history or histories. Whether those artworks were from the current past, the current present, or the current future, in it or them, as the case might actually be for each and every single one of those artworks, that was still the case here.

The butterfly-like wings were closer to Serenity's arms, while the others were closer to her spine. And the ones closer to her spine were considerably larger than the butterfly-like ones, in fact. She could even control any or all of them just by thinking of doing so, for that matter. And she'd do so, of course, for all the obvious reasons.

She tested them to see if she'd be able to use them as she normally was able to use them in her life. She did this by first moving one wing of the four at a time, then both wings of a pair, followed by three of the four wings, and finally by all four of the wings, of course. She moved each and every one of the wings just mentioned as much as she could through their available areas of movement. First by rotating each and every one of them as much as she could through 360 degrees of a circle in a vertical enough orientation on her back, then by stretching them all out as far as she could do that here, and finally by moving them all up and down as much as she could between her head and her heels, either in front of or in back of herself. When she'd done all those things as much as she could with each and every one of the wings now in question, she paced off the distance that she'd just cleared for her take-off run toward the bridge at least once more. She did this then, for all the obvious reasons, just before she'd actually make such a take-off run toward the required bridge, of course.

After doing that at least once more, then, and making quite sure that it'd met sufficiently well with her approval, she returned to the place from which she'd begin to make that take-off run of hers toward that bridge. By now, half the Scouts, at least, were now on the bridge, if not more. She suddenly sent a wolf howl toward her Scouts to let them know that she'd soon enough be joining them, if possible. When she heard a lion's roar from Corona, she knew that they'd received her message, and that they'd acknowledged her sending of it.

Wasting no more time in doing so, she looked one last time at the place where she and the rest of her traveling party had spent at least a few hours while waiting for the now-invisible comet and now-fading cross to appear in their general area of the Katrelomisian Empire. And she looked at the road they'd most recently used in order to get to the western shore of Lake Kenokoa. She thought, "I think that I really might not mind leaving this place once and for all, if we never have to come here again involuntarily. I don't know if I might ever want to come to this world again someday. But if I ever do, I really hope that I'll never have to fight beings such as I and others with me had to fight here on this world again." Then she turned her face back to the bridge again, and she chose not to look back at where she and her companions had come to this place from. Not even once more, as a matter of fact.

She took a few quick, yet deep, breaths, just before she suddenly began her take-off run. Ten seconds into it, she was already at a speed of at least thirty miles an hour, if not even faster than that. Twice that length of time, she was at a speed of seventy miles an hour. And if she'd not already done so, she was beginning to lift herself off the ground below her feet. As she began to lift herself off the ground, if she'd not already done so, all four of her current wings began to move quite rapidly and quite efficiently as needed. She gained ten feet of altitude within three seconds of her feet beginning to leave the ground, in fact. And no more than a minute or so after her feet finally lost contact with the ground, she was at least a thousand feet, if not even more than that, above the nearest part of the bridge to her. The Moon-born Skyhorse was already four miles from the bluff, as she led their party toward the necessary mountain on the nearby mountain. The nearest Sailor Scout to Skyhorse was no more than twenty yards from her quite mobile position on the bridge, and about three or so miles in front of and below where Serenity was now flying over the bridge of light.

Serenity maintained an average altitude over the bridge's main level of about four or so thousand feet, whenever she could possibly somehow do so. And she did that whenever she could, so that she could see enough of the area around herself and her traveling party's other members easily enough, for all the obvious reasons, of course. While she did so, she also maintained voice contact with the other Sailor Scouts through Corona and Skyhorse, at least, if not through any of the other Scouts as well, in fact. Or at least whenever she could possibly do so while she still flew above all her party's other members, anyway.

She could see about ten miles in any direction, more or less, while she still flew about four or so thousand feet above the bridge's main level. She stayed aloft at least until the other Sailor Scouts were no more than about a Terran statute mile or two from the mountain's side of the bridge of light, if not even longer than that.

When a path leading from the bridge to a previously-undetected cavern in the mountain became sufficiently visible to her, she began to descend from whatever height above the bridge that she'd just been flying at here. Which, at the current time for her, just happened to be at least three miles, if not more, above the very tops of that mountain. This was because a rather sudden updraft had carried her to an altitude of at least 22,000 feet above the bridge's main level, if not even higher than that. But she still didn't do it too quickly, for all the obvious reasons, at the very same time. She then gradually descended toward that cavern. She did that while also periodically circling the very tops of the mountain now in question here. She descended at an average rate of about five hundred feet a minute. Even while she was still circling the nearest tops of the mountain now in question here.

There were three main summits to the mountain. And they formed a triangle, as well, in terms of their summits' positions on the mountain. The largest of the summits was the one that was closest to the bridge. While the other two summits actually formed an angle of about eighty degrees that had the largest summit as the vertex of that angle. The second of the summits was the vertex of an angle that was about 55 degrees in size. While the other summit was the vertex of an angle that was formed by the positions of the first two summits in relation to itself, quite naturally. That angle, then, took up the remaining available degrees for a triangle's configuration, of course. All triangles had a total of only 180 degrees of size available to them.

Ten minutes after she began to descend toward the bridge, then, she was no more than about a thousand feet above her Scouts, who were now about half a Terran statute mile, at the very most, from the end of the bridge attached to the mountain in question here. And no less than half that distance, at the same time, in any case at all. She cleared the last of the vertical struts that was perpendicular to the main level of the bridge by about twenty feet of altitude. And then she briefly circled it, just before she landed for just a moment on it. She adjusted the position of her wings for at least a few seconds, if not longer, as she judged the necessary angle she'd need to fly at in order to land safely enough on the bridge no more than about twenty feet in front of her most-advanced Scout on the bridge. And whether or not she'd be able to use those wings to also fly herself into the just-spotted cavern, as well.

She reached into an inside pocket of her current uniform, and briefly withdrew a small canteen of sorts from it. This canteen had a bit of water in it, as a matter of fact. She took two quick sips of water from it, and then put it back in the required pocket of her uniform, of course. With that done, she told her Scouts to stop moving forward immediately, so that she'd have enough room to land as planned just in front of them. She saw them comply immediately. And she watched them all either sit or stand in each of their current locations on the bridge as the mood struck each of them to then do here.

Fifteen or so seconds later, then, she arranged her wings again in the necessary orientations for her to make the last part of her descent to the bridge's main level. And she took three more deep breaths before leaping up into the air once again, as she'd originally done at least a little while before. She leapt up, and within another twenty seconds, she was two hundred feet in front of and above the last vertical strut of the bridge nearest her Scouts and the rest of their traveling party's members. She reached an altitude above the level of that strut's topmost part of about four hundred feet, before changing her main orientation into that of a steep dive. She began diving only once she was sure that she'd be far enough away from that strut to do so safely enough. She dove for two seconds at an angle of about 15 degrees from the perpendicular. And then she buzzed her Scouts briefly at a speed of about forty miles per hour, more or less, and at an altitude of about ten feet from the nearest parts of their heads, in fact. She swooped past them all, and into the just-seen cavern for a few moments, before she came back to them all in the required manner. Meaning, of course, while she was still flying in the air, for all the obvious reasons.

She hovered briefly over her chosen landing area, at an altitude of about twenty feet above their heads, and then began descending to the level of the bridge's main level very gradually, of course. She quite gently brought herself down to her chosen landing location. And she soon landed while facing toward all the other members of her current traveling party, in fact.

After she did so, Moon soon found her, and she exclaimed, "Wow, Sentinel Serenity! You were really something, it seems, while you were still in the air!"

"I can't often fly like that, Moon. I sometimes wish that I could, but I just can't, Moon."

"How much longer will you be able to maintain those wings of yours here, if I may ask you this here?"

"I don't know, Moon. But I think that I can do so for at least a little while longer here."

"Are they attached to your physical back or your uniform's back?"

"Moon, they're attached to my uniform's back, in fact. But I can still control them just as if they were actually attached to my physical back, Moon."

"May I ask why you flew into the mountain, then, Sentinel Serenity?"

"I wanted to see if our way home would be inside it, Moon. It is. If you all will follow me, then, I'll bring you to the necessary place inside the mountain."

"As you wish, Sentinel Serenity," answered Moon, a few seconds later, at most. Moon then told everyone to follow her and Sentinel Serenity into the mountain as needed, no matter who or what they might actually be. All of the other members of their traveling party then began to do so, as directed by Moon and Serenity, of course. Serenity then walked on the bridge toward the mountain, with Moon no less than about three to five or so feet behind the nearest part or parts of any or all of Serenity's currently-available Celestial Wings, for all the obvious reasons.

As Moon did so, she talked in a rather low voice with Serenity about various things that'd happened while the rest of their party had still been moving on the bridge with Moon. Serenity was rather pleased to hear her daughter tell her exactly what'd happened for her Scouts while they'd still been moving on the bridge in front of and below her. Or at least for the most part, she was rather pleased to hear about such things, whenever they came up in Moon's conversation with her. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, in fact.

Serenity and Moon led everyone off the bridge, and down a path that Serenity had earlier seen while flying above everyone else in her party. The path was of a nature that was at least a little similar to that of the bridge, but not entirely similar to it. Serenity still walked on it with a mood that completely matched her own name, even though it also had a great deal of distance beneath it. And even though the slightest misstep could quite possibly prove fatal for such a being, if they ever made such a misstep in their own lives. Moon was worried at least a bit about that very thing. But not enough to show it yet, most likely, if she ever might possibly do so. She too remained quite calm, at least on the outside, if not also on the inside. And she trusted that both God and her mother wouldn't deliberately cause her to misstep on the bridge for any reason whatsoever at all.

Corona followed her older sister at a distance of about ten feet, at the very most, as she too remained quite calm, for all the obvious reasons here. Eclipse came next down the path, followed in single file by other members of their traveling party as was then needed by them all here.

The path wound around the mountain partway, until Serenity came to a series of pillars of sorts. All of which were no more than about waist-height for Serenity, generally, whenever possible. Serenity touched each of them in turn, with whatever hand she needed to touch them with at such times. As she touched each of those pillars as needed, certain energy fields that she'd earlier detected from the air then lowered themselves just enough to allow the passage of the rest of her traveling party into the recently-detected cavern in the mountain. Those fields would come back up once all the members of her current party had gotten far enough into the necessary mountain here.

Serenity led her entire traveling party into the mountain now in question. And once she'd done so to a sufficient enough degree, she told Moon to form groups of Scouts that were no larger than about six at a time, if at all possible. As the last member of their party then entered the mountain, the gold cross above their heads finally disappeared completely from everyone's own sight.

Moon began choosing the necessary groups of Scouts here, as Serenity also walked to the center of the cavern now in question here. After doing that, Serenity suddenly jumped up onto various nearby projections of rock that periodically came out of the cavern's walls. She sprang from one projection to another, until she was then able to build up enough speed to fly herself up to the cavern's own roof. The ascent to that roof took a few minutes, due to the height of that roof being at least two thousand feet above everyone else's head. She grabbed one last projection near the roof, just before she reached it, and swung from that projection until she was able to fit her feet into certain holes in the roof. Those holes would then somehow allow her to be able to hang upside down from the roof at least long enough for her to reach over to yet another nearby projection, and to touch certain areas of that projection either with her hands, fingers, and/or wingtips as needed, if not even longer than that.

As the need and mood then arose for her to do so, she proceeded to touch the necessary areas of the required projection with her hands, her fingers, and/or her wingtips. That made a large enough hole appear near her in the roof of the cavern. This hole let in a great deal of light from outside the mountain's own shape and structure. The hole was quite deep, as well. And it ran up through the mountain from the roof of the cavern to a point about a hundred feet short and about twice that distance east of the largest summit's highest point.

The inside of the cavern then lit up quite a bit indeed. And it did so until a large computer console of sorts came into view in it, as well as six mirrors of yet-unknown design. The console was in the approximate center of the cavern, but not exactly. It'd been quite close to where Sentinel Serenity had only moments before jumped up onto one of the rocky projections sticking out of the cavern's walls, in fact. Serenity took her feet out of the holes she'd just put them into a little while before. And she then did a dive that consisted of three twists and half a somersault, in actual reality, here. She landed quite gently on her feet as well, not more than two feet from the console that was now visible here in the cavern. Her Celestial Wings quite soon enough vanished from everyone's view, once she felt she no longer needed them at the current time here.

She next began pressing certain panels on that very console, until the mirrors all began to shimmer quite brightly in a rather soothing pattern. After they began doing so, Serenity told the groups that Moon had earlier chosen to stand in front of one of them in a certain order. She assigned one mirror to each group, as she tied them all together with a series of commands that her Imperium Silver Crystal had translated into an understandable enough language for her sometime before she had to do just that somehow.

The first group consisted of Corona, Eclipse, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, under the control of Mercury. The second group consisted of Bamboo, Calypso, Chrysalis, Cinnamon, Rainbow, and Jasmine, with Chrysalis leading it. The third group consisted of Saturn Beta, Uranus Beta, Neptune Beta, Pluto Beta, and the Moon-born Skyhorse, with Skyhorse controlling it. The fourth group consisted of Amilaram, Sierra, Paquasim, and Onziza, under the leading of Amilaram. The fifth group consisted of Firehawk, Sacala, Enisangob, and Ocabirama, with Firehawk leading it. While the last group would then consist of Serenity, Moon, Mini Moon, Peppermint, Luna, Artemis, and all of their current horses, for obvious reasons, of course. Serenity would control that group as well, quite naturally.

When all the chosen groups were in the required positions in front of their currently-assigned mirrors, Serenity told their members to each form a line no wider than the pane of each of those mirrors, headed by each of the necessary Scouts. Moon stood in front of the sixth mirror, and she patiently awaited her mother's eventual joining of her group, once the needed commands had all been input as needed into the now-present computer console of some yet-unknown sort.

Serenity began making sure that the necessary commands were quite accurately input into that console. When they'd been input enough to allow the first group to then depart the area they were now all in, she briefly notified the appropriate Scouts, of course.

Ten seconds later, Mercury led the first group into the required mirror, and she hoped that it wouldn't drop her or the rest of her group in a place they weren't expecting to land in, or in positions they weren't expecting to land in either. In fact, it actually held them inside it temporarily, and it'd do so at least until all of the groups' various members had been sufficiently accounted for somehow.

Exactly twenty seconds after Eclipse was the last of the Scouts to completely enter the first of the mirrors, Bamboo then led her group into their assigned mirror just as planned. As had happened with Mercury's group, Bamboo's group was also held inside their mirror for a time.

Then Skyhorse's group entered their assigned mirror, beginning to do so exactly twenty seconds after Sailor Jasmine had finished entering the second mirror completely. Pluto Beta brought up the rear for that group, as a matter of fact. When she completely disappeared from sight as well, her group's own mirror held them just as the first two mirrors had done with their own groups.

After another minute or two had passed, Amilaram's group was completely inside the fourth mirror. And it was being held in it for the time being, at least. Twenty seconds after the last possible sight of Onziza vanished from everyone else's view, Firehawk's group would have to begin entering the fifth mirror, of course.

Within yet another three minutes, then, Ocabirama was the last member of her group to completely disappear from the sight of everyone else who was still in the cavern with them. Serenity made sure that Peppermint would be able to ensure that all their horses would be transported as well by the required mirror, once she herself would have to enter it in her own particular turn, while Ocabirama and Enisangob were both still in the process of entering the fifth mirror. It'd be up to Peppermint to make as sure as she possibly could that all of their horses would be able to enter the mirror in question before she was the last member of their entire party to enter any of the mirrors, as a matter of fact.

Peppermint quite efficiently and quite confidently assured her future daughter that she'd do absolutely everything that she'd have to then do for the rest of their group's current members, once Serenity was completely inside the necessary mirror. No matter what it was, and no matter what it'd take for her to do that, she'd still do so, somehow, as a matter of fact. Serenity soon accepted that promise from her future mother with quite a bit of pleasant relief spread somewhat liberally all around her, and also with quite a bit of the mood that shared its own name with her there as well.

Just as Ocabirama then finished disappearing completely from view, Serenity checked the necessary panels on the console at least once more quite quickly, of course. With that done, she quite quickly ran to the necessary position in front of Moon, for all the obvious reasons, as Peppermint also started counting down seconds from twenty seconds after Ocabirama had finished completely disappearing from their views. When Serenity heard the numbers that Peppermint was counting hit five, she then stepped toward the proper mirror in the cavern. At the very instant that Peppermint hit zero, Serenity made direct contact with the required mirror's pane, and began entering it as needed. Within another twenty or so seconds, then, Serenity was sufficiently deep inside the mirror, and waiting for Moon to join her there in like manner.

After Serenity entered the mirror completely, Moon began entering it when her count hit zero as well. Next came Luna and Artemis, in that particular order, in fact, when their respective times required them both to do so. Mini Moon checked all the connections that were currently joining all the horses in a line to each other as Serenity and Moon were each entering the mirror in each of their proper turns, with at least a little help from Peppermint, whenever the need actually arose for that to be the case here. By the time that Artemis had completely vanished from the sight of all the horses, Mini Moon, and Peppermint, all of those connections had been unquestionably secured just as they'd need to be, for all the obvious reasons.

Exactly twenty seconds after Artemis had completely vanished from sight, then, Mini Moon established direct contact with the mirror's pane, and entered it as well. It didn't take her very long at all for her to completely disappear from the sight of Peppermint and all the horses, in fact. But she still was in contact with the horses, at least, if not also with Peppermint at the same time. This was actually the case here because of the fact that she was still somehow able to be holding onto at least one of the aforementioned connections that ran between the various horses, if not more than one of them.

Mini Moon quite soon began leading the horses into the mirror as well by periodically pulling on that very connection or those very connections, once she was sufficiently into it herself to allow her to also do that. And once the horses all realized exactly who was then pulling them into the mirror, if they hadn't already done so by then, they calmed down quite a bit indeed, and walked quite serenely into it in each of their respective turns.

After the very last of the horses that Mini Moon had then been leading into the mirror disappeared completely from her sight, Peppermint began counting down one last time for a period of only twenty seconds of time. As she did this, she took one very brief last look around the cavern, before she said, "Fully activate the Chrysanthemum Portals in five minutes, and transport all their occupants to the chosen coordinates five minutes later!"

The strange computer console acknowledged in like manner, "Orders received. Portals will be fully activated in no less than four minutes and fifty seconds, and transport of all their occupants will then happen five minutes later, unless the process is aborted, once the appropriate code is given well enough here. Confirm final orders for execution with the appropriate code, please."

Peppermint immediately confirmed the orders no more than four seconds, and no less than two seconds, before she'd actually have to establish direct physical contact with the required mirror's pane. And she did so quite quickly indeed here just by saying, "Chrysanthemum! Moon! Sailor! Execute! Execute! Execute!" After the last "Execute!" passed her lips, the computer said, "Final orders for execution confirmed! Code accepted! No further abort orders will be accepted at this time through this console! Good luck to you all, wanderers! May you all return to your homeworld quite safely indeed!" That was the last thing she was able to actually hear just before she established direct physical contact with the required mirror's pane, and before she began entering it. Exactly five minutes later, the portals would all be fully activated, as planned. And exactly ten minutes later, they'd then transport everyone to the coordinates Serenity had earlier chosen for them all.

Peppermint was completely inside the mirror she'd entered no more than thirty seconds after beginning to do so. She quite soon was able to find everyone else that'd entered any of the portals. And she told them all exactly what was going on, rather quickly, if they didn't yet know that at all to a sufficient enough degree, here. All of them soon arranged themselves in the same relative positions as they'd earlier been with each other when they'd been quite suddenly whisked away from the Moon and to Tarokauni III, if and whenever it was somehow possible for them to do just that then.

Exactly five minutes after Peppermint had established direct physical contact with the necessary mirror's pane, every single member of Serenity's current traveling party was in the same relative positions that they'd each been in, at least as much as they now could be, when they'd originally been whisked from the Moon to Tarokauni III in actual reality. They somehow stayed totally stationary for a period of exactly five minutes more, as they were all still in the process of being transported in the same manner, or at least in a similar enough manner, that they'd been whisked between both of the aforementioned planetary or lunar bodies anywhere in the known Universe. This was quite necessary, at least so that the flow of time could then be reversed enough to allow them to return to the Moon at the exact same time that they'd been carried away from it, if not for any other conceivable enough reason or reasons here as well at all, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

That time would be at whatever time of day or night they'd been carried away from the Moon for September 1, 174 BC. They'd still, however, somehow be able to remember all the things that'd happened to them over at least the last two or three weeks of time that they'd spent on Tarokauni III, most likely, if they were sufficiently sentient in each of their lives. Meaning, of course, if they were either of the cats or one of the Scouts, if not also any or all of the horses, for all the obvious reasons here.

They'd most likely also be able to use any or all of the powers and/or items that they'd discovered while on Tarokauni III, at least once more in their futures. If not more than once more for any or all of them, as well, in each of their futures. Or at least that was what they hoped would be the case for them whenever possible in their futures, for all the obvious reasons, if not for any other reasons at the same time or times in each and every one of them.

Exactly ten minutes after Peppermint had first established direct contact with the required mirror's pane, then, all of them were dropped back into the Moon's date of September 1, 174 BC, at the exact instant that they left it all earlier. It was then as if they'd never left, after the storm that'd taken them earlier from the Moon returned them to there, and rose back up into the sky just as quickly as it'd come down to whisk them away from the Moon. By the time that the storm that'd taken them away from the Moon had risen enough above the heads of all their traveling party's members, then, all the Scouts were back in each of their respective non-Sailor Scout states of being, no matter what they were in each of their own lives.

And they were in the exact same positions that they'd been in just before they'd been whisked up into the air by the storm that'd earlier grabbed them all up, after the storm then left them all quite behind once and for all. No matter what those positions actually were, they were all still in each of the exact same ones that they'd actually been in when they'd all been sucked up by the storm. And for that, at least, if not for any other reasons as well, they were all quite glad, as a matter of fact.

* * *

Okay, that's another chapter down, and now the Scouts and all their companions are back on the Moon, even though it's only the Moon of 174 BC. Several chapters still remain for this story, and there will be one more big fight before the Scouts can finally all return home to their respective proper time periods. Certainly many will not be happy about having to part from a lot of people that they will have met during this adventure of theirs. But they must all each return to their respective time periods, so that history can still unfold for the Moon Kingdom as it must in times later than 174 BC, of course. Or for those who come from times later than when the Moon Kingdom will fall, for sure, as well.

There are three more chapters left before the last fight in this story, and there will be three chapters after the chapter with that fight in it. So there are seven chapters remaining to the story after this one, folks. We still have about a third of the story to tell, but that shouldn't be too hard to do in the remaining seven chapters for it, I think.

Hope you have all been enjoying this story, and been entertained by it so far, and have been informed a great deal about the Moon Kingdom's history for this story's timeline, as well, folks. There's much more to learn of it in this and/or future stories in its series, for sure. But things will continue to get more dangerous for many in the Moon Kingdom and elsewhere, as it continues to develop, unfortunately. We know that the Moon Kingdom will fall, ultimately. But just how it does in this timeline, I still have not revealed, for it's not the proper time to reveal that sort of thing's exact details. In time, it will be, but not just yet, in any case.

Until the next chapter, I'll close this, then. TUS out.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

The Scouts and their companions are now back on the Moon of 174 BC. They have not yet found the shield they need to find before they can ultimately return to their home time periods, though. Among any number of other things they will need to do before they can, as well. And they will also need to talk more with King Jason, Queen Eve, and a number of other people native to the time period that they are now in before they can do that easily enough.

There will be about sixty pages left in this story, based on the length of my original manuscript for this story, once this chapter is posted, it seems to me. And six more chapters will remain after it is. I am beginning to wind this story up, but we still have one more fight left in this story, for sure. Once that fight is over, it won't be much longer before this story will come to a close.

Once it does, I will begin posting _Operation Cocoon One_ as soon as I can. At the moment, I'm not quite sure just how many chapters will need to be posted for it. But it should still be just about the same length as this and certain other stories already in this story series, I think, more or less.

With no further ado, I shall now give you the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_. I hope you all enjoy it, and all, of course. Until later, then, I'll close this. TUS out.

* * *

Main Ballroom In The Imperial Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 1, 174 BC - September 12, 174 BC

Sometime later, then, all of the members of the Scouts' traveling party eventually returned to the Imperial Palace's grounds in Moon City. And they eventually met up with King Jason and everyone else who they'd asked to accompany them on their excursion to explore the area of Moon City, but who'd chosen not to do so. They only did so, however, after they'd all had the chance to relax for at least a little while since their returns to the Imperial Palace's grounds, if not even longer than that, in fact.

They eventually met up with them in the Imperial Palace's main ballroom just before the beginning of that night's ball. And they began relating the story of their strange adventure on another planet in the Universe to King Jason and the rest of their fellow Scouts in a rather secluded part of the main ballroom, for all the obvious reasons, before the aforementioned ball was due to start at Earthrise, if not at some other time that day or night.

They told their story about this adventure of theirs in as detailed a manner as they could tell it, whenever they possibly could do so. But some parts of it, they had to shroud with at least a little mystery, for all the obvious reasons, of course. They may not have always wanted to have to do so, of course. But they still did so, whenever the need arose for them to do so, at the current time.

Eventually, they all periodically danced with various other people who were currently at the now-started ball in the Imperial Palace's main ballroom. Serenity, for instance, periodically found herself dancing with a man who appeared to be about five or so years younger, at the very least, than she currently was in her own life.

This man soon enough introduced himself as Duke Sebastien-Jean Ereugig. And he looked quite a lot like a combination of Princes Daniel and Darien, in fact. He had at least a little bit of a beard on his face, but it wasn't quite as thick a beard as the one that her actual husband wore in his own life, either. His beard was much more of a red color than Prince Daniel's now was. For Prince Daniel's beard was actually quite black in its very own nature. He was also of a height that almost matched that of Prince Darien, as well. He dressed a lot like Prince Darien too, as a matter of fact. But instead of wearing a red cummerbund around himself, he wore a cummerbund that was of a multi-colored nature. Specifically one that was of a purple, green, black, and white nature, at least for the most part, if not entirely. Several ducks and whales also covered much of the currently-visible area of his cummerbund.

Serenity soon enough said, "I don't think that I've seen you before now, Duke Ereugig."

"I believe I could say the same thing about you here too, Princess Serenity. I don't think I've ever seen a woman who looks quite like you do here, in fact."

"Maybe not. But know this, if you may not already know it, Duke Ereugig. I'm married now in my life. And I have children of my own now, in it, as well."

"But if so, then where is your husband now?"

"He had to go away on a mission elsewhere in the Kingdom. It seems that King Jason and Queen Eve needed him to investigate certain rumors that they'd recently heard that concerned at least a few Nallisans that might not like the fact that their nation has now fallen here on the Moon, Duke Ereugig. He's now investigating those rumors for them. I can't say any more about that sort of thing here, for all the obvious reasons, of course, Duke Ereugig." She didn't like actually having to lie to him about her and her husband, of course. But she still had to do so, for all the obvious reasons, quite naturally enough.

"I see. Well, let me just say this then, Princess Serenity. I hope that his mission's a complete success for all the necessary people on our side of things here, and that he's somehow able to return safely enough to you and all your children, at least, if not to anyone else as well in his own life. I hope this here, for all the obvious enough reasons, of course," said Duke Ereugig, as he eventually finished a dance with her at least once more during the current ball.

Eventually, the current ball had to come to an end again in the Imperial Palace's main ballroom. And everyone that'd attended it for at least a little while had to return to each of their currently-assigned chambers in it, as well. For they'd all eventually have to sleep again for at least a little while, of course. Supposing that they didn't also have to do anything else at all as well in any or all of them at any time before Earthset then occurred again in the area of Moon City on the Moon, quite naturally.

They spent at least the next few days, if not even longer than that, trying to re-adjust to being back on the Moon again. And they also continued to explore around Moon City's local area. Even in the part of that area that'd later have the Crystal Palace located in or near enough to it, as a matter of simple enough fact. They weren't yet looking for the exact place where they'd later find the shield they'd eventually find. But they still periodically explored the general area of Moon City in which they'd originally found themselves when they'd first been brought to the Moon City local area of 174 BC. Meaning, of course, the general area in which the future Crystal Palace would eventually be built.

Then, about one or two weeks after their recent return to the Moon City area of late 174 BC, at most, numerous people eventually found themselves on the future Crystal Palace's grounds in Moon City's local area. And they were all in the part of those very grounds that'd later become known as the Sailor Scout Garden, in actual reality. They were all there after enough of them had experienced dreams and/or visions that'd somehow told them the night before they came there that they'd have to be there then. It was now quite early in the morning of September 12, 174 BC, as they all came there as needed. Quite naturally, Queen Eve had to be among those people, as well.

Many shovels had been brought to the necessary part of the Crystal Palace's future grounds, for all the obvious reasons, as needed. As well as anything else that might also be needed at the current time here, of course. And then everyone assembled in that place waited for a sign that they were supposed to look for the new shield that they'd come here to find, in very short order.

That sign came about three or so hours before local midday would arrive in Moon City's local area, in fact. The necessary sign consisted of a bald eagle circling above the heads of everyone in the assembled group. This particular bald eagle was carrying a red rose with white and pink tips on it in his mouth. He also bore a mostly navy blue three-fluke anchor on his back, and his chest was covered with mask-like and sword-like areas of varying sizes and colors. The eagle's anchor was of considerable size, as a matter of fact. He eventually flew to a nearby white oak tree that was the only such tree among many good-sized red cedars and black walnuts. This tree was the closest tree to the assembled group of people, as well.

Queen Eve then looked at the eagle briefly, just to see exactly which direction he was now looking. Seconds after she did so, eight eagle feathers then suddenly materialized in the exact place that she and several of her current companions would then have to dig, in order to find the shield. She began walking toward them, and as soon as she got within four feet of them, she slipped off whatever footwear she was then wearing. As did anyone else that would need to dig the required hole with her, once they each got within four feet of where they too would have to dig that hole of theirs.

Ten seconds later, she took a shovel from Sailor Peppermint, and quite earnestly began to dig. Not long after receiving the shovel from Peppermint, her part of the hole was then at least four feet deep, if not deeper than that. And she was still digging, as a matter of simple fact. She'd keep digging at least until she found the shield, if not even longer than that, of course.

Several other members of their assembled party also helped her to dig for that shield, for all the obvious reasons, as well. But they still wouldn't actually be the one to find the shield that was now in question here, and not only because a scroll said that would be the case for Queen Eve, in actual reality. Queen Eve had actually been the very first of the Sailor Scouts. And she would be in time, after the shield had been found for a long enough period of time, of course.

Eventually, Queen Eve did actually find the aforementioned shield. And it was decorated exactly as the same scroll that'd told of its existence had said that it would be. With no discrepancies at all actually being around anywhere in and around the entire shield, as a matter of fact.

Soon afterward, then, Queen Eve began refilling the hole with the necessary soil again, for all the obvious reasons. And so did anyone else who'd been digging part of the hole up until the shield had been found and extricated from it, as well, quite naturally.

After all the soil was then back in the necessary hole, a pillar suddenly appeared quite unexpectedly near Queen Eve. In fact, it'd be the very same pillar that Serenity would eventually use on the same day that she'd initiate Serena and several other girls as Sailor Scouts. But it still hadn't yet been erected in actual reality. It wouldn't be erected in actual reality at least until the beginning of the Silver Millennium. But it would eventually be erected, just the same. This pillar, though, was more a holographic representation of its future self than it was anything else at all at the current time.

After Queen Eve then touched this pillar, a quite large boulder then appeared exactly where the boulder that would block a tunnel most of the time would be found. The future tunnel and cavern that'd be behind and below it both still remained completely unseen. And they both would remain completely unseen, at least until they were both eventually discovered at the exact same time that the pillar that was currently being seen in a largely holographic manner would actually be erected in physical reality, if not even longer than that.

A plaque then appeared two feet to the left of the nearest edge of the aforementioned boulder here. This plaque had sides of six feet each on it, and it was framed by some reasonably-thick pieces of willow, in fact. These pieces of willow formed a square around the plaque, which was currently blank, and made of solid multi-colored marble rock. Another pillar about the same size of the aforementioned boulder provided quite ample amounts of support to the plaque and its frame. But at a more horizontal plane of appearance, as well, at a height that was about the height of both of Serenity's own knees, in actual reality.

All of the assembled group's members then came over to either stand or sit as close to the plaque as they could possibly get at the current time. Then, after they'd all done so as much as they could, some very small, but still very readable, writing suddenly began to appear at the very top of the plaque. And that writing said, "Queen Eve, and all assembled animals and personages who can now read these words, this will be a place where all future Sailor Scouts will need to be initiated as Scouts, whenever possible in the future, at least until the end of the Moon Kingdom, if not even longer than that. Queen Eve, you have found the Shield of Abel Adamson and of Yoshioki. Because you have now done so, you are to be the very first of the Sailor Scouts that'll be around in the Moon Kingdom. You'll need to come here the day after those who aren't native to this time period are finally able to leave here for their proper time periods. Then you'll become the first of the Scouts in a ceremony that only you, your husband, your Prime Minister, your High Priest, and your family's household animals will be able to witness. All who can now read these words, step forward whenever you hear your birth name spoken to you in your head, if it is not the same name that you each have now in your respective lives. You each will need to write your name or leave your own footprints on the plaque, somehow, as quickly as you can after you each hear your birth name, if not your current name, in your respective heads. "

Nothing more was then visible on the plaque, at least not at the current time, for a large part of it would have to remain quite clear on it, at least until the necessary footprints and/or names were each added to it as needed. This, of course, was for all the now-obvious reasons here.

First, Queen Eve heard her birth name, which was actually Eve Crystal Chrysanthemum. She was descended directly from the first actual ruler of Moonia, in fact. But she wasn't necessarily in the same exact line of common descent as her husband, for all the obvious reasons. She and her husband shared a common ancestor from no less than five generations of their ancestors, but none after that generation in their respective families, as well.

She stepped forward, and then when she was in contact with the plaque's base with both her hands, a knife of some sort appeared near her left hand. She immediately took up the knife, and she proceeded to carve her birth name right under the last line of text that everyone else with her who could read it was now seeing on the plaque. She carved her name in a flowing script on the plaque, and in as small a size as she could carve it, at the same time. When she finished doing so as best as she could then do, she immediately returned the knife to its previous position from which she'd taken it, and it vanished from sight no more than a few seconds later.

Then each of the future Queens of the Moon Kingdom who were currently present nearby stepped forward in their respective turns, and they put their names on the plaque in whatever ways they were somehow able to do just that here. They did so only in the proper orders of their future reigns over the Moon Kingdom, of course. And the last of them to do so was the once and future Queen Serenity, for all the obvious reasons. Then came the other Scouts who were now present nearby, if they'd not already done so here, starting with Moon. All the Scouts from Serena's time on the Moon put their names on the plaque as the need arose for them to do so then, including, of course, Corona and Eclipse, at least. Then the Scouts who were actually from a time period roughly two millennia later, more or less, proceeded to do so in the necessary enough manners, once the need arose for each of them to do so, of course. They were then followed in putting their names on the plaque as needed by both Sailor Bellasina and Sailor Clarissa, if they'd both not already applied their names to the plaque now in question here. Which, in fact, had already been done by both of those Scouts, right after all the Scouts of Serena's own time on the Moon had finished doing so somehow as well, in the required manners.

Then King Jason and any of the other male humans or humanoids that were now present in the area of the future Crystal Palace's Sailor Scout Garden did so, as well, whenever and however the need arose for them to do so at all. That left only the sentient enough animals now present to leave their marks on the plaque as well, of course. Meaning, quite naturally, at least Luna and Artemis, if not any other currently-present animals as well. Those animals, in fact, only happened to be Luna and Artemis. And they each hopped into a large box that was primarily filled with potter's clay, if not just with potter's clay instead. Some of whatever was in that very box then stuck on each of their four paws. After which, they both had Serenity bring them in their respective turns to the plaque now in question here. First Luna, and then Artemis, left their marks on the necessary plaque, as needed. As soon as they did so, then, everything that'd just stuck to their paws transferred itself to the surface of the plaque.

After Artemis finally left his mark on the plaque, a strange voice then suddenly spoke as out of thin air, "Queen Eve, exactly three days from the time this experience of yours ends here, all of your guests in this certain time period will each be returning to their respective time periods just as they were each brought to this one, with no unnecessary differences whatsoever. And when they are, they'll all be returned to each of their own time periods at the exact same times that they each left them for this one rather unexpectedly. You have two days, and two days only, of those three days to do whatever you wish with them, before they must then prepare to return to each of their respective time periods just as they might then see fit. The available time period for you to do as you wish to do now with them begins in five minutes, and five minutes only. When you all see the eagle fly away again, then you're all to leave this particular place immediately, and not return to it for a period of exactly two days. Is that understood well enough, Queen Eve, by you and all with you here?"

Queen Eve looked around briefly, and then saw all her current companions nod in a sufficiently affirmative nature, before she replied to the voice's words, "Yes, it is. We will do as you have just directed us to do here."

"Very good. The eagle will fly away now in four minutes exactly. When he does, then you must do as you've just promised that you would do, Queen Eve." The strange voice then ceased speaking, and spoke no more at the current time, if it'd ever do so again someday yet in the future, in fact. The eagle flew away just as had been predicted by the voice. And then everyone else immediately left the area in very short order. They left nothing at all behind that they'd brought with them, nor did they leave the shield behind either. The plaque vanished immediately after the last of them finally left the area to a sufficient enough degree. And it'd not appear again, most likely, at least until sometime rather close to either end or both ends of the Silver Millennium and/or the Moon Kingdom.

It'd now not actually be possible, then, for all the other Scouts who'd come to this particular time period to actually witness the founding of the Sailor Scouts, somehow. Which then made all of them, or at least many of them, quite disappointed here, for all the obvious reasons, at the very least. Most especially Moon, Corona, and Eclipse, as a matter of actual fact. For they'd really wanted to be able to see the actual founding of that group before they would've had to leave again for their very own time period, in fact.

* * *

Six chapters are left here for this story. The last fight occurs in chapter eighteen for it. There are still some loose ends to tie up before it's over, as well. And still some potentially sad partings to come in it, between some characters. Especially for Queen Serenity and her future mother, for example, among others now present here.

But it won't be able to be avoided, for if Margaret doesn't get back to her time period, and if certain other people don't get back to their own time periods, as well, Queen Serenity, among many others, most definitely will never be born, for obvious reasons. And if that happens, then there will be no Silver Millennium, much less even a Moon Kingdom at all, later on in history, of course.

I hope you've all enjoyed this story, and been entertained by it, and all. But if not, so be it, folks. I still would really like to read your thoughts about this story, and any number of others in its related series here, though, if and when I can, et cetera, for sure.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

This will be a short chapter, but it will only involve all the Scouts and their feline companions, plus King Jason, Queen Eve, a royal artisan, a the royal chronicler. The artisan will begin creating a sculpture that will eventually be seen inside the Imperial Palace, while the chronicler will write whatever he can about one of the last meetings the royal guests from the future will have with King Jason and Queen Eve in 174 BC.

With no further ado, then, I'll close this. Let's get back to the story, and all, folks. TUS out.

* * *

Outside The Imperial Palace's Walls

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 14, 174 BC

Just about 44 hours after the known Scouts had finally left the area of the future Crystal Palace's grounds where the Sailor Scout Garden would be in them, Queen Eve met up just outside the Imperial Palace's walls with all her time period's current guests. Or at least as many of them as she could meet up with at the current time. She did this because they'd wanted to meet up with her for at least a little while before she'd be unable to be with them again, for all the obvious reasons. King Jason accompanied her to that meeting, as did a single royal chronicler and a single royal artisan who was not only just a painter, but a sculptor as well, at the very least, if nothing else as well at the very same time in his own life.

The chronicler would copy down anything that he could possibly copy down while his monarchs were with all of their current guests from the future, of course. While the artisan would try to memorialize this last very likely meeting of his monarchs with those guests of theirs as much and as well as he could do so, for all the obvious reasons, whenever he could do so somehow here.

A large block of solid marble that was about twenty or so feet long, about six or so feet thick, and about twelve or so feet high would be the artisan's main means of expression here, most likely. It'd already been brought to the Moon City area of the Moon by the time that the Scouts who weren't actually from this particular time period in the Universe's history had suddenly arrived in it. It'd actually been part of the very last free Nallisan castle that Moonian military forces had taken when total lunar union had finally been achieved by them, under the quite wise command of King Jason and Queen Eve, at least, if not anyone else as well.

That particular castle had finally been taken, but not without a great deal of fighting, in fact. Not much of that castle had actually survived after the final fall of the Nallisan capital to the Moonian military's armed forces. What currently still remained of it in its original location was now quite obviously a global monument, quite naturally. The block of solid marble now in question here had actually somehow been loaded onto the nearest usable enough transport-capable ship, and brought as close to Moon City as it could be by sea, if it couldn't be brought all the way there, for all the obvious reasons. If it wasn't somehow actually able to be brought there just by sea, it was then carried by as many land-capable animals, people, and ground transport methods as possible, until it finally reached the place at which it now sat, of course.

It'd taken at least a little while, if not a long while, for the block of solid marble to be transported to the Moon City local area, after the fall of the Nallisan capital. But it still had been brought there by the time that the known Scouts had first arrived as they had in the Moon City area of August 174 BC. It might not necessarily have been easy at all to transport it to Moon City, but it still had been brought there, just the same. And it was the largest piece of the castle it'd been part of to be transportable to Moon City's local area, if it hadn't already been destroyed or damaged sufficiently before it could be. Other parts of the same castle had been destroyed or damaged, either by military forces or by civilians that lived sufficiently nearby, in fact. But the solid block of marble that now sat outside the walls of Moon City's Imperial Palace had been kept from any harm at all since the fall of the Nallisan capital, somehow.

It might actually take at least a little while for the sculptor to complete the sculpture that would be carved out of that block of marble, for all the obvious reasons, of course. But it'd still, somehow, be completed before the eventual end of King Jason and Queen Eve's shared reign in the Moon Kingdom, in fact. He'd first paint the assembled visitors to the Moon City area of 174 BC on at least one large deerskin, if not more than one. Then he'd use that painting of his as the basis for his work on the sculpture he'd begin work on after they'd all returned to each of their respective time periods. This would be the first of many sculptures that he'd be commissioned or ordered to do during the reign of King Jason and Queen Eve over the Moon Kingdom. For he'd just become a royal artisan in his life, not long after the fall of Nallisa to Moonian military forces.

His royal chronicler counterpart had also become a royal chronicler at about the same time, if not at the exact same time, that he'd become a royal artisan in his life. This royal chronicler would be one of the main royal chroniclers, if not the main royal chronicler, for King Jason and Queen Eve during their reign over the Moon Kingdom. And he'd actually be one of Queen Serenity's very own ancestors, as well. But that wasn't yet known, for all the obvious reasons, of course, if it ever would be, anywhere at all in the Moon Kingdom. Especially in the area of Moon City on the Moon.

For most of the next three or four hours, at most, after King Jason and Queen Eve joined their time period's current guests, the known Scouts and the Moon Kingdom's current rulers conversed with each other at considerable enough length, whenever it was somehow possible for them to do so at all. As already stated, the royal chronicler who was also present proceeded to copy down everything that he possibly could during the current meeting, for all the obvious reasons, of course. And the artisan also began the necessary process of producing a painting of the occasion, to the best of his current ability to do so here and now.

The artisan periodically positioned the various known Scouts and his rulers in various positions, as he felt the need to do so here. Even going so far as to put several of the Scouts at heights that they might not normally prefer to be at, if the need arose for him to do so at all here. He even had at least some, if not many, of the known Scouts sitting in nearby trees. Even if they really didn't want to have to be in any or all of them, as well. Mainly, at least one of the known Scouts who was also actually a Monitor, if not also any or all of the other known Scouts, in fact, didn't really like the idea of actually having to be in any trees at all at the current time in their life or their lives.

But those known Scouts, whoever they might have actually been then, still tried to deal with such things to the best of their abilities to do so, just the same. It might not have been all that easy for them to do so at all. But they still were able to do so well enough, in fact. And just as soon as they could, they quite quickly proceeded to leave those trees again to the best of their abilities to do so, of course.

Mara, Ginkya, Martina, Jolata, Miranda, Abigail, Yazmis, and Zardiz, at least, if nobody else as well, were the known Scouts that most definitely had to be in the necessary tree or trees here. Others either sat or stood as the artisan then told them to do so, at the same time, of course.

Serenity stood in a considerably-sized cluster near Serena, Destiny, Bethany, Margaret, and Rini, at least, if nobody else as well, just above where Amy, Raye, Lita, Mina, Luna, and Artemis were making another cluster on the ground. Andrea was part of a third cluster of people on the ground with Sirashiki, Catrimusa, Laura, Shari, Rocío, Jostara, and Denise, as well. Sonir, Geline, Fadra, and Vurkigad formed what possibly could be considered to be a fourth cluster on the ground near where their fellow Monitors/Scouts were sitting in at least one nearby tree, if not more than one nearby tree. While Queen Eve and her husband King Jason both then sat on one considerably-sized rock located just to the right of Raye's cluster, and a little bit below the basic ground level of Serenity's cluster, as a matter of fact. As for Hannah, Alexis, Michelle, and Susan, they all basically sat in a cluster just to Rini's left side, and at about the same ground level that Rini sat at just in front of and to the left of Margaret, in actual reality.

Serenity and Margaret stood next to each other, with Serena sitting roughly in front of the space between her mother and her grandmother. Rini sat to Serena's immediate left, while Destiny did the same on the other side of Serena. That then meant, of course, that Bethany would quite naturally be on Destiny's own right, for all the obvious reasons. And Destiny's right wrist was connected to Bethany's by the required cord, quite naturally, as well.

Hannah was the closest of the members of her own cluster to Rini, and she sat at the same basic ground level as Rini was currently sitting at. To Hannah's own left, then, running from the nearest to her to the farthest from her, the other members of her own cluster were Susan, Michelle, and Alexis, in fact.

Amy sat almost directly in front of Bethany, while Raye did the same thing just in front of Destiny. Lita held Luna in her lap, as they both sat to Amy's own right. Which then meant, of course, that Mina had to hold Artemis, quite naturally enough here. Mina sat with Artemis directly to Raye's left, and in front of Serena, as well.

Andrea sat in the approximate middle of her cluster on the ground, as she was mostly surrounded in that cluster by Sirashiki, Catrimusa, Laura, Shari, Rocío, Jostara, and Denise. However, Jostara and Denise were both standing, in their shared cluster, right in back of Andrea, even as at least three, if not all, of the other five members of their cluster were sitting around Andrea as well.

Sonir leaned against one part of the tree that Amilaram was now in, while Geline sat on the ground almost directly in front of her. Fadra did the same with another nearby tree, at least in terms of leaning on it, in front of the Imperial Palace's nearest wall. And Vurkigad sat in a position quite like, but not entirely like, the one that Geline was now sitting in as she sat in front of Sonir.

Queen Eve sat closer to Lita and Luna than her husband did, but still was at least two feet away from both Lita and Luna, due to the actual run of the terrain that was immediately surrounding the rock that she and Jason both were on now here. She didn't like that fact much, but it wasn't something that she'd not be able to change, most likely. Or at least not yet, if she'd actually be able to change the nearby terrain enough at least periodically in the future, after she'd actually form the Sailor Scouts within the next day or two of time, somehow.

Eventually, then, and before it was too late for him to do so well enough somehow, the artisan had finished with at least the basic things that he'd need to do before he'd be able to carve the necessary sculpture out of the nearby block of marble once and for all. Then he finally let all the necessary people actually move around a great deal again, once and for all, if he'd not already done so to at least some degree right here and right now.

And then soon enough afterward, the meeting between the Moon Kingdom's current monarchs and their time period's current guests had to end again, so that those guests of theirs could do whatever they wanted or needed to do before they'd have to return to each of their respective time periods in the Universe's own history. The royal chronicler and the royal artisan really wished they could've spent more time with those people from the future, but it just wasn't possible for them to then do so, of course. That was also the case for Queen Eve and her husband King Jason, in fact. But they too accepted that it just wasn't possible for them to do that somehow either. Or that it most likely wouldn't be, as well, in either or both of their lives, if not also in anyone else's lives as well.

* * *

Five chapters remain. The last fight will happen two chapters from now. Next up, several discussions between multiple Scouts leading to the chapter with that fight in it. After that fight's chapter, just three chapters will remain, and everyone not native to 174 BC will return to their proper time periods as the need arises for them to, for sure, one way or another, in the next-to-last chapter for this story.

I hope to have the rest of this story posted by no later than this evening or night, if possible. But not sure yet whether I'll be able to do that here. After I finish posting it, _Operation Cocoon One_ will be next to post, for sure. I do not know right offhand how many chapters/segments it will have for it, and how long it will take to completely post, but I do know that it will be about the same length, more or less, as this story is. As for Book VII, I currently have it at about 44 pages, if memory serves.

 _Operation Cocoon One_ was originally written completely, if I remember correctly, sometime by the end of 2003 or 2004. So it will probably read much, if not entirely, like all the other volumes of this series already posted and/or begun do. I will try to get back to editing and/or revising Book III at some point, so that it may read better. But that may not happen for at least a little while longer, I think, unfortunately. For there are a fairly good-sized number of other projects I want or need to complete and/or write, whether they're already posted online or not.

Until the next chapter for this story, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

One chapter remains before this story's final fight. In it, many Scouts will discuss various things with each other, in various places, before they are asked to a meeting with Abigail elsewhere on the Imperial Palace's grounds. Whereupon, that will lead into the next chapter of this story, the one with its final fight in it.

With no further ado, then, I'll close this, and get back to the story. TUS out.

* * *

Inside Serena's Future Imperial Palace Chambers

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 14, 174 BC

After Serena and the rest of her fellow visitors to the Moon City area of 174 BC went back inside the Imperial Palace, Serena and several of them eventually met up with each other in Serena's future Imperial Palace chambers. That was only the case, however, if all of them didn't or couldn't then do so, whichever the case might actually be at that particular time.

Serenity was among those people that met up with each other and Serena in Serena's future Imperial Palace chambers, in fact. Also there were Destiny, Bethany, Amy, Raye, Lita, Mina, Luna, and Artemis, at the very least, if not anyone else as well here.

Serena had asked Rini and Margaret, at least, if they'd not mind joining her in those chambers. But Rini and Margaret had said that they'd had other plans for at least a little while longer. Specifically with Jostara, Miranda, and Abigail, at least, if not also with Hannah, Alexis, Michelle, and Susan, at the same time, currently.

Laura, Shari, and Rocío chose to spend a little time with Martina, Andrea, Jolata, and Denise in the part of the Imperial Palace's grounds that'd later become the Hebron Garden, in due time. Though it might not always be called that, as a matter of fact, it'd eventually be started in that very place, once Jolata quite possibly began it in her own particular time period as Queen.

Mara and the rest of her Monitors who were also Sailor Scouts declined Serena's request to join her and several others in her future Imperial Palace chambers, at least for a little while, if not for the rest of their preparation time prior to their departures for the 10th Century AD. They all did so because they'd wanted to spend at least a little bit of time training with each other in a large clear area just outside the Imperial Palace, after getting permission to do so from King Jason and Queen Eve.

The Earth would shine to at least some degree, if not to a great degree, as they did so here, most likely, in fact. And hopefully, it would actually also provide enough light for them to train by for a while, of course, for all the obvious enough reasons.

Everyone else from the future, if they'd not be anywhere else on the Imperial Palace's grounds, or near enough to them, would most likely be in whatever chambers they'd been assigned since shortly after they'd come to the Moon City area of 174 BC. Those people, in fact, just happened to be Sirashiki and Catrimusa, at the current time.

Sirashiki and Catrimusa proceeded to mainly sleep for most, if not all, of at least the next six or so hours, if not even longer than that, once they'd left the area outside the Imperial Palace's walls behind to a sufficient enough degree again. Supposing, of course, that they each didn't have to sleep even longer than at least the next six hours of time, for all the obvious reasons. Which, in fact, they didn't absolutely have to do, if they didn't really want to do so, at all.

As for Serena and the rest of the sentients in her future Imperial Palace chambers, they met up there with each other just as they'd planned here. Lita brought the food and drink, and Amy brought at least one scroll with her. Raye brought a rather strange musical instrument that looked like a combination piano and guitar with her, while Mina brought a few hairbrushes and other hair-related items, such as hairbands, for instance, to the meeting as well. Luna and Artemis brought nothing except themselves, while Queen Serenity then brought both cats to the meeting on her shoulders. Destiny and Bethany brought each other, and a few mirrors for everyone's use, to the meeting.

Serena was sitting near one of the windows for the chambers as everyone arrived outside them. When Serenity knocked on the necessary door or doors of them, she arose from where she was sitting in them, and she let them in. Raye was the first of the other sentients who'd definitely be at this particular meeting to enter those once and future chambers of Serena's. Then came Lita, with all the necessary food and drink. Next came Serena's nearest sisters Destiny and Bethany. After which Serena began taking the mirrors they'd brought from them both, and setting them on the nearest available table in her chambers. Mina entered moments later with all her hair-related items in a sack she'd slung over her back a while before. Serenity entered with the cats still on her shoulders. After which both cats soon hopped down on the floor again. Amy brought in whatever scroll or scrolls that she'd just brought with her here. Lita soon distributed the available food and drink around as needed here.

When Serena asked Amy why she'd brought at least one scroll with her to the meeting here, Amy answered, "Because, Serena, I would, at least, like to have everyone sign their names on it, if it's at all possible. Yes, I do know that we all left our respective marks on the plaque where the Sailor Scout Garden will eventually be. But I really don't think that it'll appear again for at least a while longer. Meaning at least until the beginning of our Silver Millennium, if not even longer than that here, Serena. I'd like to be able to say that we unquestionably met up with at least a few other Scouts who weren't actually from our own time period, once we get back to the 10th Century AD, from which we ourselves do come, in our lives."

"I see. But what if the Negaversers actually ever find out that we did so, somehow, Amy?" Serena asked this as she and the rest of all her current companions also began to consume whatever food or drink was then in front of each of them at the current time.

"They won't be able to, I think, if we put the necessary scroll or scrolls in a sufficiently secure place, Serena."

"Like where do you suggest, then, Amy?"

"Do you remember exactly where the First Bethlehem Cathedral will later be located, Serena?" asked Amy, between bites of an apricot preserves-covered rice cake.

"I suppose I do, Amy. Why do you ask?"

"I was thinking that we could hide it underground there in the same place where you'll eventually toss the scrolls that you've already actually tossed in your life."

"But that particular place hasn't actually been constructed yet, I think, Amy." Serena said this between bites of a carrot that was now in her right hand.

"So what? We can go there just before we have to return to the exact same place where we all appeared here in this particular time period. We can dig at least a bit of a hole, if not at least a bit of a tunnel or more than that, and then we can bury that scroll or those scrolls there for a time. Then we can hide the hole or tunnel that we'll have just made with a suitably-sized rock or something, so that it's at the very top of that hole or tunnel, and above the scroll or scrolls now in question here. Then we can try to hide whatever we put at the top of the necessary hole or tunnel somehow, if possible. And do this so that it'd remain as hidden, and unknown of, as much as possible and as long as possible, if we can possibly do that somehow."

"And how do you propose to do this, then, if it's somehow possible for us to do that, Amy?" Serena then sipped from a cup of green tea that had a bit of carrot juice in it, just after asking Amy this question of hers.

"I think that Saturn Beta might just be able to hide it for a time with her Amethyst Sailor Star Shield, but with a different version of it. One that she might not yet be aware of yet, but that I think that she might still be able to use, just the same. I think this after having seen her use it at least a few times, if not even more than that, during any number of our previous adventures. And certainly during at least one of them, in fact. If she would say, 'Amethyst Sailor Nebula Shield,' I think that she might be able to cloak the necessary location with some kind of device that had at least enough power stored up for however much longer it actually will be until the beginning of the Silver Millennium, if not even longer than that. The First Bethlehem Cathedral won't be built, if I'm not mistaken, until at least the start of the reign of King David I and Queen Jolata, if not even later than that here, in our very own Moon Kingdom."

"So you think that this might very well be one of Queen Jolata's main building projects in the Moon City area, at least?" asked Lita, between a bite of some roast beef and a sip of some cinnamon-touched oolong tea.

"It very well could turn out to be, Lita. I think I even remember reading at least something that had to deal with her and the beginning of the First Bethlehem Cathedral's construction process in the Moon City area of the Moon. I think I read at least something about it and her about two or three years after Destiny and Bethany were born to Queen Serenity and Prince Daniel, in fact," said Amy. Amy then finished her current rice cake, before she then reached over and refilled her bowl with some vegetable beef stew.

"Will she be the one that actually builds the Rainbow Springs Palace as well, Amy?" asked Mina. Mina asked this question of Amy, just before she took a bit of spaghetti and meatballs and put them between two halves of a submarine-style bun, as well as a few slices of cheddar cheese.

"No, I don't believe so, Mina. That palace will begin to be built, if I'm not too mistaken here, when Queen Abigail I is still a Princess in our Moon Kingdom. And it'll be built some length of time after she discovers the Springs there, and after several of her subjects eventually found that city on the other side of the Moon, if it's not already founded by then under a different name."

Destiny then thought for a few moments, and then asked Amy, "What about when Mount Chrysalis is discovered? Will it be named that by Queen Rebekah II, or will it be named by anyone else in her honor, when it is, if it's not already called that by then?" After asking these questions, she took a sip of some oolong tea that was currently in front of her.

"I don't know that for sure, Destiny. I really don't. Nor do I know when Mount Serenity will get the name that we know it by in our time, or who exactly will call it that in their own lives, once it gets called that for the first time ever on the Moon," answered Amy.

"Could it possibly be first called that in my own lifetime, Amy?" asked Queen Serenity.

"I really don't know, Queen Serenity. If I did actually know whether or not it was, or will be, I still don't really know if I could then tell you that, for all the obvious reasons, of course."

"I see," said Queen Serenity.

Bethany then asked, "Does anyone have any ideas whether or not Laura, Shari, and Rocío will be old enough to be Sailor Scouts by the end of the Silver Millennium?"

"I don't think that they will, Bethany," said Luna.

"But if they are, then what?"

"Then we'll deal with such a situation as the need actually arises for us all to do that, of course, Bethany," answered Artemis.

"And if they're not?"

"Then we do what we can to protect them all and the rest of us, of course, Bethany," answered Raye.

"Even if they may not be the Moon Princess or Queen Serenity, Raye?"

"Yes, even if they're not either of those people, we must do what we can to protect those of us who can't fight for us against our enemies, for all the obvious reasons, Bethany."

Bethany thought about this for a few moments, and then asked, "What if it's still not enough, people?"

Lita soon answered this particular question of Bethany's. And she answered it by saying, "Then I suppose we'll all actually have to hope and trust that God will actually make it quite possible for your mother Queen Serenity to save as many of us as she possibly can save somehow, if and whenever she actually tries to save us all somehow with her Imperium Silver Crystal, Bethany."

"I suppose you're right, of course, Lita. But I really hope that Mother is somehow able to save all of us, of course, just the same. I really don't know for sure if Destiny and I will somehow survive. But only time will tell if we do, I think."

"Just because you may not necessarily appear in a lot of people's dreams and/or visions about possible futures for any or all of us, Bethany, that doesn't necessarily mean that either you or Destiny, if not both of you, will be lost after the Moon Kingdom's end. Supposing that there actually is one, of course, sometime yet in the future. You could possibly survive, and not yet know it for sure, in your life or lives, Bethany. I prefer to think, hope, and pray that you both, as well as so many others that we know of in our respective lives, will somehow be saved sufficiently well by Queen Serenity. At least until I ever have a sufficiently good enough reason to actually do otherwise in my life, as a matter of fact, here," said Mina, in rather short order. Amy finished her current bowl of vegetable beef stew just as Mina said the just-said things in the necessary way to Bethany, as a matter of fact.

Destiny then said, after taking another sip of her current bit of tea, "Bethany, we've each promised to do what we can to protect those who can't protect themselves in their lives sufficiently well, no matter who they might possibly be. And we've each promised to work with each other to the best of our respective abilities as Sailor Scouts, whenever possible. At least among those of us who are actually humanoid in nature, of course. Those of us who are part of Serena's royal Court have also promised to do the best that we each possibly can to protect the Moon Princess and Mother, as you very well know by now. Even if it actually means that we may possibly be lost to each other for the rest of forever yet to come, those of us who are part of Serena's royal Court have promised to protect both her and Mother to the best of our respective abilities to do so, for as long as we possibly can do so." Serena and everyone else who then needed to do so began refilling their plates and their drink holders as needed, of course, for all the obvious reasons, if they'd not already done so by then to a sufficient enough degree here.

"And if they kill me, then what, Destiny?" asked Serena.

"Then our Moon Kingdom is lost, Serena," answered Destiny.

"Because Mother won't stand for my loss, at least, without trying to do something about it to the best of her ability to do so. Even if it may kill her."

"Correct, Serena," said Destiny.

"Are you actually suggesting here that I'll unquestionably be the death of the Moon Kingdom, Destiny?"

"I wouldn't have put it quite that way, Serena. But now that you've said that, I suppose several of us might agree with that particular thought of yours," said Destiny.

"I don't really want to be the cause of the Moon Kingdom's very own eventual destruction, people."

"Then you must actually let Prince Darien go into the air, and not actually try to be with him, if and when he ever gets whisked up into the air rather unexpectedly and rather suddenly."

"I really don't want to lose him, Raye."

"You undoubtedly will have to make a very hard choice, then, Serena. Either to be with him, or to remain behind in the Moon Kingdom, then. You won't actually be able to have it both ways, Serena. I really wish that you could have it both ways, if at all possible. But I really don't think that you actually will somehow be able to do that here, Serena. I really do want you to actually be able to fall in love with someone. Even if it must truly be Darien that you fall in love with, Serena. You deserve at least that much in your life, I think, Serena. Even if we may really fight or really argue with each other in our lives, I still think that we each deserve to have at least one special love in each of our very own lives, if not more than one. And you won't be able to take back your choice, once you finally make it. For when you finally make it, you'll then be forcing your mother to act one way or another. Even if she doesn't really want to have to, she'll still act as she feels she must. No matter what the cost may actually be to her or to our Moon Kingdom, Serena."

"How will I know which choice to make then, if and when the need arises, Mars girl?" Raye finished whatever food and drink that she had left in front of her after Serena asked her that question. And then she set aside all her current dishes and silverware, showing everyone else now present that she was no longer either hungry or thirsty. Or at least that she wasn't currently either of those things, as she was then meeting with them all here.

"Your heart will lead you to act as it then will see fit. Even if your head might then say otherwise, I think your heart will actually lead you to make one choice over another, when push comes to the proverbial shove for you. Even if it ultimately means the end of the Moon Kingdom, Serena," answered Raye.

"What if I see many, if not all of you, at least rendered largely unconscious, if not asleep, and then I act as my heart might lead, Raye?"

"Then so be it, Serena. I really don't know if that's how things might actually happen for any or all of us, of course. But I really do hope that you'll do the right thing, no matter what happens, in your life, whenever possible. I really hope this, of course, for all the obvious reasons, Serena," said Raye, not too much later here.

"Answer me this, then, if you can, Raye. In your own opinion, do you actually think that I will make the right decision at least for me, if not for anyone else at all?" Amy then did the same things that Raye had just done a few moments before, after finally finishing all of her current food and drink. And she awaited a chance for her to sufficiently enough add to the current conversation here again.

"I really have no idea, Serena. But I honestly do think that we can somehow survive the loss of the Moon Kingdom better than the Moon Kingdom could somehow survive our losses, in fact, Serena. Or at least I think that many, if not most or all, of us could do that well enough here, Serena, as of the current time in my own life."

"If I still happen to go after Darien, do you think you'd understand why I did so well enough, somehow and someday, Raye?"

"I suppose I might, Serena. But I can't really be sure enough about such things right now. And I think that'll still remain the case at least for a while longer yet, for all the obvious reasons, of course, Serena."

"Mother, what about you?" Mina was the next of the assembled sentients to finish her own current food and drink, and to set aside the necessary dishes and drink holders as well.

"I think I would, Serena. I really believe that I'd feel the same way that you might feel, if I were you, and your father was actually in Prince Darien's place. But would my very own mother have actually understood me well enough, if I'd been in such a situation while I was still quite young here? I really don't know, honestly, Serena."

"What do you think about us having seen your mother as a Princess, and not as a Queen, Mother?"

"I don't know, Serena. I think it's still too early for me to know exactly how and what I think about us having done that here. Maybe in a while, I'll be able to tell you all here. But right now, I don't really think that I can, in fact."

"Will you miss her again, if and when we ever get back to our own proper time period, Mom?"

"Of course I will, Serena. The loss of one's mother never ceases to affect many people, no matter how long they may actually live in their own lives, Serena. I am no exception to that belief, it seems. I actually didn't want or expect to have to become Queen of our Moon Kingdom for at least a few more years. But when your Uncle Raphael and I lost both our parents, just as we both did, I then had no real choice in the matter. I actually then had to become Queen of our Moon Kingdom in name, and not just in fact, Serena. I was acting like a Queen, but without actually becoming Queen, at least until I heard of her rather unexpected demise so long ago. I had to make my Queenship official in all the necessary ways, once it was quite clear that my parents would not be coming back just as they'd left the Moon behind sometime before. If I didn't, then there might actually have been a civil war, in fact. Which would undoubtedly have torn our Moon Kingdom apart, in due time, I'm quite sure. And if so, I have no doubt at all here that we'd probably have been quite thoroughly destroyed before you all actually came along to us, in due time. That's if the Negaverse would've actually known about us to at least a sufficient enough, if not to a complete, degree by then, I think, my dear Serena."

"And if the Moon Kingdom ends, then what, Mother?"

"All mortal things must end in time, Serena. It's just a matter of when, not if, they will, if they're not eternal in their respective nature or natures, Serena," answered Serenity.

"Because of what Adam and Eve did back on Earth in the Garden of Eden, Mother?" asked Serena.

"Yes, that's so. But God later sent His only Son to save the whole Universe, so that all who truly believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life, in actual reality." Luna and Artemis then finished whatever was in their various food or drink containers. And they both did so almost at the same time, with Luna doing so just seconds before Artemis was able to do so. Then they both pushed those containers of theirs to one side of each of them, as needed.

"Even if our mortal bodies do actually not survive, Mother?"

"Yes, even if that is the case, those who believe in His Son will not perish eternally, Serena. They will live eternally, if they do so, and if their names are in the Book of Life that will be opened at the proper time in the Universe's history. Those whose names aren't found in it will know torture and torment such as has never before been seen, heard, or otherwise sensed. And there will never be an end to such torture or torment for them. They will know darkness as they never have before. And they will know other things that they won't have known before in their own existences. Fire will be always around them. And they will never get any relief from it. No matter what. All the lost will experience the same basic things forever, for all eternity yet to come, no matter what kinds of beings they might actually be in their respective existences. They will always have the smell of death on them. And they will never be able to escape that smell."

"And for the saved, what will happen to them?" Serena asked this as she and her sisters then finished whatever food or drink they each had yet to consume, and they put all their containers to one side of each of them, as they each had to do then.

"They will know things that they will never have expected to know, and experience joys, pleasures, and blessings that will never end. They will walk in the Celestial City and all things in and around it anywhere in the Universe, as God might drive them to do in their eternal existences. The entire Universe that they all will then know will be completely perfect, in every single way, without a doubt. They will see God face-to-face, and not be afraid. The things that they will see and the people that they will meet are currently undescribable in complete enough detail here. But I do know that whatever is to come after the end of this mortal Universe of God's, it will be quite unlike the current Universe of God's very own creation, Serena." Lita then finished her meal as well, if she'd not already done so, and she too set all her dishes and drink holders aside again, of course.

"Do you know if the original Skyhorse that we know of in our shared time period is already, or will be, in the Celestial City, as of it, Mother?" queried Serena.

"I think that she is, Serena. But I never actually met her while she was still alive, in actual reality. She left her mortal existence behind in AD 894, if I remember correctly. True, as of the time that we're now in, she's not yet born. And as of the time period that she was yanked out of, so to speak, I wasn't yet born."

"How is she related to you, then, Mother?" asked Destiny.

"Let me think for a moment, if I can, here." While she thought, she also finished her meal, if she'd not already done so by then, and she also set aside all her dirty dishes and silverware as well. She then said, "If I'm not too mistaken here, Serena, Queen Anne IV was my father's paternal grandmother. My father was not only King Francis XII, he was the son of Francis XI, who was once Prince Adrian, and Queen Abigail III, who herself was once Princess Julia. Francis XI was the son of Francis X and Anne IV, who we all also know were actually Prince Balleste and Princess Jostara, prior to their eventual marriage in our own common past. I could be wrong about this, of course. But I really don't think that Princess Jostara has yet met Prince Balleste in her life, as of the time that she was actually at in it, prior to her being brought here by the same exact phenomenon that brought us here as well at least once, if not more than once."

"She appears too young to you, Mother?" asked Destiny.

"Yes, I believe so, Destiny."

The assembled sentients then conversed about at least a few other things in each of their lives, before they all decided to work with their hair to at least some degree by using the hair-related items that Mina and Serena's twin sisters had earlier brought with them. Mina then distributed those items as needed among the necessary sentients currently with her in Serena's once and future Imperial Palace chambers. Of course, simply because they were cats, Luna and Artemis wouldn't necessarily need their fur to be dyed or anything else at all. But the other sentients now present might either need or want their hair to be done in the necessary manners, quite naturally.

For at least the next hour or so, then, the assembled sentients worked with each other's hair exactly as they either wanted or needed to work with them. Including, of course, Serena and her mother.

By the time that they were finishing up their work on each other's hair, then, most of them heard some knocks on at least one nearby door, if not more than one such door. Those knocks had been applied to that door or those doors by Princess Margaret. And she had Jostara and Rini with her at the current time. Abigail had actually chosen to stay behind in whatever place she'd been in with them, Miranda, Hannah, Alexis, Michelle, and Susan. But Rini, Jostara, and Margaret had all chosen not to stay there. For they'd all wanted to be able to spend at least a little more time with Serena and the rest of her Court. Not to mention, of course, Queen Serenity, as well.

Rini soon said, "Serena, you look almost like my mother back home in my own time period right now."

"Almost? Why only almost, Rini?"

"Because you're currently wearing a pink dress instead of a white one, and your current tiara is different than the one that she normally wears, Serena. Your hair is quite similar to hers, but not quite. It now looks almost like many kinds of meatballs do, I think, as a matter of fact."

"So does yours, as well, Rini. Maybe my own hair isn't quite like yours is, but it still quite looks a lot like mine does, if I'm not too mistaken here at all, Rini."

"Princess Margaret here wanted Princess Jostara and I to come here with her for a while, at least, Serena."

"I see. Do you want us to work with your hair, then, Rini, while we're all here for a while?"

"I really don't think that's going to be necessary here, Serena. At least not for me, anyway. I don't know about the others, however."

"I'm fine, Rini. My hair's fine," said Margaret. Princess Margaret's hair was mostly still pink at the current time, for it'd not yet turned mostly purple or blonde, as of the particular time in her life that she'd then been at when she'd earlier been grabbed out of her own time period rather unexpectedly. Some streaks of both purple and blonde hair were now beginning to develop on her head. But her head was still mostly covered by pink hair, just the same. She was currently wearing it mainly in two large buns, but not all of it. She'd let some of her hair hang down right in the middle. And she'd let that hair fall down to about the middle of her back, at the same time, at the very most. The buns of hair were each about one or two fist-widths in average diameter, in fact. Three fist-widths, at the very most, in any case at all, so that she could then allow at least some of it to hang down off her head and at least partly down her back.

"All right, Princess Margaret. If you don't want anyone else to do your hair at this time, at least, so be it. What about you, Jostara?"

"No, I'm fine as well, Rini." Jostara had mostly blonde hair, except where there were some red or brown streaks in it. And it often fell to about the middle of her back, at the very most, whenever she had it down and unbound in her life. However, she wasn't currently wearing it that way. She was now mainly wearing her hair in two somewhat thick ponytails that were tied with royal blue and gold hairbows at either end of them. One side of each hairbow was royal blue in color, while the other was gold in color. And there were stars of either color on it as well. Where the main color was royal blue, the stars were gold, and where it was gold, the stars were royal blue. She was wearing a mostly royal blue floor-length dress with some gold trim on it, as well as a mostly navy blue and silver sash that ran currently from her left shoulder to her right hip. Her Imperium Silver Crystal was in her own locket, which was currently hanging at the bottom of a necklace that mainly consisted of pearls and rubies, whenever possible. She was also wearing a tiara that looked almost like the one which Sylvia Wakefield would later wear, and was currently wearing, in Serena's own time period. But it wasn't her Sailor Scout tiara, as a matter of fact, that she was now wearing here. Instead, that tiara was the one that she most often wore out of her own Sailor Scout state of being, back in her very own time period.

Amy and the rest of her current companions conversed with each other quite frequently while they were still together. And Amy even was able to convince Rini, Margaret, and Jostara, at least, to sign their names to at least one scroll somehow, if not more than one, as well. They enjoyed each other's company as much as possiblews at the current time, of course.

Eventually, more knocks were heard outside Serena's once and future Imperial Palace chambers. Serena went to the necessary door or doors, and then she opened it or them up as needed. When she did so, she soon saw Laura, Shari, and Rocío outside them. She asked, in quite a curious manner, "What's going on, Laura?"

"Do you think that you and your current companions could come with us for a little while?"

"Why, if I may ask you this, Laura?"

"It seems that your presences are desired elsewhere on these grounds, Serena Moon."

"By who?" asked Serena.

"Abigail, at least," said Shari. "It seems that she wants to see you all for a while, if she can. She may have an idea about how to make it more possible for us to return to each of our respective time periods, Serena. But she doesn't yet know if it might be a good enough idea to try it somehow."

"All right, Shari. I'll see if anyone really wants to go with you three to wherever Abigail now is on this Imperial Palace's grounds. Give me a few minutes, please."

"Okay, Serena," said Rocío. Then Serena closed the door or doors now in question here again, for all the obvious reasons. And she went back to where everyone else was in her once and future chambers.

She soon said to them all, "People, Abigail would like to see us again as soon as possible. She seems to think that she may have a good enough idea about how we might be able to get back to our respective time periods. But she doesn't yet know if it might be a good enough idea for us to possibly try it out somehow."

Serenity thought for a moment, and then said, in the necessary manners, "Everyone who can do so, please transform. Let's all go wherever Abigail is in our Sailor Scout states of being. That way, Destiny and Bethany won't need to be connected to each other via a cord. I will go as Royal Sailor Serenity. Rini, you can choose which of your Sailor Scout states of being you can go there in."

"I'll go as Super Sailor Mini Moon, Queen Serenity."

"As you wish. But I'll still remain in control of our group."

"Agreed. Moon is next in line after you, isn't she?"

"Yes, if I'm not too mistaken here, she is. Even though she's not currently a Super Sailor Scout, she is. She won't likely be one at least while she's still on the Moon, if my dreams and/or visions that relate sufficiently well to her are sufficiently accurate in their respective natures here, I think."

"Fine with me, then, Queen Serenity." Then everyone who could actually do so, at the current time, wasted no more time before they transformed into their respective Scout states of being, as was needed or was desired by them all. Luna and Artemis didn't transform, of course.

Moon led everyone to the outside of her once and future chambers in very short order. When she did so, Laura, Shari, and Rocío met them there, of course. Not more than about another five or so minutes later, then, Laura and her two known sisters also transformed into their respective Sailor Scout states of being, even while they were still on the move. One moment, they were each just Laura, Shari, or Rocío, and the next, they were each Twilight, Starhawk, or Nightwalker, as the case might be for each of them in either case at all.

* * *

Four chapters now remain for this story, folks. This next chapter is going to be rather difficult for many, for sure. But it will still lead to the Scouts meeting with a few other people that should be able to help them all later on, in any case. Who those are, you'll have to read on and find out, of course. I don't know if we'll see them again in this story's series just yet, mind you. But we just might, if certain things work out well enough somehow in the future for this series, at least, I think.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

This will be the chapter with the final fight in this story. It will end with the Scouts meeting at least one person who will be key to their hopes of returning to their respective time periods, if not more than one. Who that person is, or who those persons are, you'll just have to read on so you can find out, folks. After they meet that person or those persons for a long enough time, it will not be much longer before they finally are able to return to them, one way or another, for sure.

With no further ado, here's the next chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , everyone. Until later, then, I'll close this. TUS out.

* * *

Elsewhere On The Imperial Palace's Grounds

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 14, 174 BC - September 15, 174 BC

On the way to wherever Abigail was now, they quite unexpectedly encountered Duke Ereugig. And as they did so, they all saw him being quite suddenly transformed himself. He was being transformed from just Duke Ereugig into a man that was wearing a silver-trimmed navy blue and bright red tuxedo and matching trousers, as well as matching footwear. His cummerbund was almost exactly like the one that he'd worn while he'd danced at least once with Queen Serenity, and a teal green-trimmed mostly black mask appeared mainly over the top half of his face. This mask of his was cut, in fact, almost exactly like Prince Darien's mask would be cut whenever he was actually Tuxedo Mask, and not just Prince Darien. Not exactly, as a matter of fact, but still enough like it that if it'd been a totally white mask instead of the color that it actually was, some people might think he was wearing Tuxedo Mask's own mask. Supposing, of course, that his face was quite clean-shaven, and that his attire looked enough like Prince Darien's attire might look whenever he was actually Tuxedo Mask in the future. His footwear was a pair of moccasins that'd been made from mostly brown buckskin, as well.

They all soon heard, "Not again, please! I really don't want to be Sentinel Whaleduck right now! Why do I have to be Sentinel Whaleduck right now?"

"Whaleduck? What kind of name is that?" thought Moon. "Who's in danger?" she wondered, as she and her current companions still moved toward where Twilight was currently leading them. For she'd also remembered at least one of her own previous dreams and/or visions of possible futures for her and other members of her own particular crowd in the Universe. Most specifically as they related at least to her and to Prince Darien, as a matter of simple enough fact here.

Not more than a few seconds later, then, Ereugig was completely Sentinel Whaleduck, even if he really didn't want to be. And there were even some duck-like wings that'd appeared on the back of his tuxedo and his buckskin moccasins. All four of those wings were all largely gray in color, but not entirely, in fact. For along each of their respective edges, there were several white, teal green, light blue, and bright red streaks, wherever they weren't gray in color. The two wings on his back were quite considerably larger than the two wings on the backs of his moccasins were, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

Then he began flying through the air, while his own wings carried him through it in the necessary manner or manners. His wings then carried him through it just as Queen Serenity's own Celestial Wings had earlier done for her back in Tarokauni III's own atmosphere, as a matter of fact. He flew off, in fact, in the exact same general direction that the Scouts were now heading toward. But he wasn't going that direction for the exact same reason or reasons they were, as the Scouts might later find out, in fact.

He soon was flying at least a few feet above all their heads, and they all wondered what was making him do so here, in due time. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons.

By the time that they met up with Abigail, she was already in one, if not the only one, of her Sailor Scout states of being, as a matter of fact. Abigail was in her Sailor Scout state of being as Super Sailor Rainbow, and when they met up with her, several other Scouts were already there with her as well.

Moon soon asked, "What's the story here, Super Sailor Rainbow?"

"I thought that if we all tried to use at least some of the power from each of our crystals, whichever ones they might actually be, for at least the time being tomorrow, when we leave, we might somehow be able to get back to each of our respective time periods, Moon."

"I don't really know if that idea might work well enough for us tomorrow, Rainbow."

"Chrysalis and I seem to think that it might somehow work, at least, Junior Sailor Moon."

"Maybe at least two of you might think so, Rainbow. But I still think that it might be quite risky for us to try it here, at least as of the current time, anyway."

"And you don't want to risk your fellow Scouts from your time period without hearing at least a bit more about my idea here?"

"Not if I don't absolutely have to, Rainbow. For I believe that I and other sentients from my time period, at least, if not any other time periods as well, would need them to survive well enough for at least a little while longer, if at all possible."

"Because of your current enemies, if I may ask this?"

"As of my time period, anyway? Yes, that's what I believe is the case here, as a matter of fact, Rainbow."

"You realize that Royal Sailor Serenity could probably have you do as I think might be appropriate enough here, don't you?"

"Maybe she can, but I happen to know her quite a bit better than you do in my life, Rainbow. You can't possibly deny that here."

"Maybe not. But if I'm not too mistaken here, you and your mother, at least, are each among my descendants, in actual reality. So if that's the case, then you theoretically could still be inside me, in a manner of speaking. For at least one of my children will be an ancestor of yours, Moon. Maybe even more than one, I think."

"I suppose you might say the same thing could then logically enough be true for your future husband, for all the obvious reasons, Rainbow," said Junior Sailor Mercury.

"No matter who he might then happen to be, I believe that I could do just that, if I really wanted to here, Mercury," said Rainbow.

"But you won't, most likely," said Royal Sailor Serenity.

"No, I don't think that it's necessary here. Or at least not at the current time, anyway," replied Rainbow.

Just then, Whaleduck passed over their heads, and he headed toward the nearest available wall of the Imperial Palace, for some yet-unknown reason. As he did so, Amilaram and her fellow Monitors who were also Scouts came to where Moon was now standing in a cluster with Serenity and anyone else that had just come there with her in search of Abigail. Also there were all four of the Beta-level Scouts from Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. Peppermint, Skyhorse, Mini Moon, Twilight, Starhawk, and Nightwalker were all standing between Moon and Rainbow. Or at least for the most part, they all were doing so at the current time.

"What's up, Amilaram?" asked Moon.

"It seems something rather strange is happening on the other side of the Imperial Palace from where we were just training with each other," answered Amilaram, as she looked around her, and also saw Whaleduck flying over the nearest wall of the Imperial Palace.

"Strange enough to make a relative stranger begin flying in the air all of a sudden?" asked Moon.

"Yes, I believe so. I suggest that you have all the other Scouts that you can find well enough on these grounds come here, so that we can check it out well enough. I think it may even have something to do with our getting home to our respective time periods well enough, as well."

Just then, a series of loud howls sailed through the air from the general direction of the future Crystal Palace, toward which Whaleduck was now flying as quickly as he could do so. The Scouts didn't know why, but they then did just as Amilaram had just suggested that they do here.

Five minutes or so later, then, at most, all the other Scouts who weren't actually native to the current time period joined their fellow Scouts and both cats there. They all did so rather quickly, in fact.

Then Serenity soon led everyone in the same general direction that they'd earlier seen Whaleduck flying off in. Meaning, quite naturally, toward the future Crystal Palace's actual location in the Moon City local area. The royal guards at the necessary gate let them all out in rather short order, and accepted their orders to let them back in later, if they either wanted or needed to get back in later on, even while it was still night in the local area of Moon City. Supposing, of course, that they could then be let back onto the Imperial Palace's own grounds safely enough, if and when they were ever able to do so well enough later on.

The assembled Scouts and cats prepared themselves for at least one potential battle as they headed toward the actual location of the future Crystal Palace, for all the obvious reasons. Even Moon, quite naturally, did so, as she and the rest of her current companions continued on their ways to that particular place in the Moon City local area of 174 BC. They didn't yet know, most likely, that Duke Ereugig was actually the Moon Kingdom's current Prime Minister, if they ever would do so well enough in their own respective lives. Supposing, of course, that they didn't yet already know it in any or all of them, quite naturally.

They followed the howls and several duck calls punctuated with various whistle-like sounds away from the Imperial Palace, not yet knowing what was going on here. By the time that they then all got within half the distance between the two Moon Kingdom Palaces, several quite large and quite bright flashes of light were often appearing in the nearby skies.

Several of those flashes were of colors that Whaleduck was now wearing either on his wings or on his clothes, while others were not. By the time that they got about eighty percent or so of the way to the Crystal Palace's future location from that of the current Imperial Palace, they were all then beginning to hear the sounds of a rather fierce battle. And Serenity was starting to see from what was still a considerable distance, that quite a few large monsters were holding several people from the Moon City local area captive in various manners most likely too numerous at the current time. She then said to her Scouts and cats that were now with her, "It seems that Whaleduck is opposing at least a few large monsters that are holding various people from the local area captive somehow. And he seems to not be doing quite as well as he might want to be doing against them, Scouts. For his flashes of power seem to be dimming at least a little bit. He may need our help, as a matter of fact."

"So you want us to step on it, if we can?" asked Mars.

"Yes, if you can do so, that's exactly what I want you to do here, Mars. Peppermint and Skyhorse, come with me now. Moon, you lead the others while we're away from you all here. I have an idea that might help him while the rest of you are still heading toward his current location."

"Are you sure that it actually would be wise for you to leave us here, Royal Sailor Serenity?" asked Mercury.

"It may not be wise for me to do so, Mercury. But from the looks of things, it seems Sentinel Whaleduck may very well need our help here."

"What about you, Peppermint, and Skyhorse?" asked Moon.

"I think we'll be fine, Moon. God willing, of course. Moon, I need you to lead the rest of the Scouts toward where the flashes are coming from, and ask no more unnecessary questions here. I will be powering up one power level, and becoming Sentinel Serenity. I need you all to do as I have just said here, or my idea will most definitely not work well enough, whatever that idea of mine might actually be here."

"Fine, we'll do as you've just ordered us to do here. But please note that I still object to this idea of yours that requires your impending absence from us, then."

"Understood, Moon. Your objection is now noted. But please carry out my orders to the letter, just the same, Moon. I'll talk with you later about this idea, if at all possible. Supposing, of course, that we all survive at least long enough for me to do just that before we have to leave this time period behind again, for all the obvious reasons."

"All right, Mother." Then Moon turned to the rest of her Scouts that'd still be accompanying her toward the necessary location, and she said, "You all heard what she said, I'm quite sure. Let's do it, then. Good luck, then, Mother, with your current idea, whatever it might actually be here."

"Thank you, Moon. Now come with me, Peppermint and Skyhorse, as the others all do as I've just ordered them to do here." Serenity had Peppermint and Skyhorse walk in another direction entirely, as Moon continued to lead the rest of the Scouts toward the necessary nearby location as needed. When the rest of the Scouts were far enough away from her, Peppermint, and Skyhorse, Serenity then said, "Peppermint, Skyhorse and I will need to have you place one of your feet on each of our backs, as we both fly in the air next to each other. You then will need to attack whoever's fighting with Whaleduck as we carry you to the necessary part of Moon City's local area, and do so to the best of your current ability to do so, Peppermint."

"How will you both do so, if I may ask you this, Serenity?" asked Peppermint, in very short order.

"Would you care to show her, or should I, Skyhorse?"

"I'll do so, Serenity." Skyhorse then did just as Serenity had now suggested here. And when she then did so, exactly six wings materialized on the necessary parts of her own uniform or her current footwear quite soon afterward. Which in this case, was actually a pair of mostly brown leatherized boots with gold soles on them. Where the boots weren't brown or gold, and where they didn't have the wings on them, there was at least some turquoise blue silk trim and some beadwork on them. The beadwork on them was arranged in such a manner as to suggest the presence of two horse's heads on each of the boots now in question here, in fact. While the turquoise blue silk trim also ran all along the top edges and down the back line of the boots, as well.

After Skyhorse called on the very same Eagle Wings power that Sylvia had at least once before called on, and would later call on, Serenity soon called upon her Celestial Wings power again. Four wings then materialized on her uniform's back, just as they had done before, and exactly where they'd done before, when Serenity had last used them. As before, she tested each and every single one of them out, first alone, and then with at least one, if not all, of the other wings that were now also present on her current uniform's back. After she then did so well enough to suit her sufficiently well, she soon knelt on the nearby ground, and had Skyhorse do the same to her own left. Skyhorse knelt down just to Serenity's left, and then Serenity had Peppermint step onto both of their backs, for all the obvious reasons.

As soon as Peppermint then did so, some safety straps of some unknown sort then suddenly appeared around her feet, so that she'd not fall off either or both of her current companions too easily, of course. One strap appeared for each foot, quite naturally. Once Peppermint was sufficiently secured to her position on their backs, Skyhorse and Serenity then had her lean forward so that her head was between both of their heads, at least until they were all able to get airborne well enough. She did so, in very short order, and not more than about another minute or two later, then, all three of them were quite airborne.

Skyhorse and Serenity had begun to hold hands with each other, so as to provide a more stable platform from which Peppermint could then attack Whaleduck's current opponents, whoever they might then be here. Serenity held Skyhorse's right wrist with her own left hand, and Skyhorse held Serenity's left one with her right hand, at the same exact time. Peppermint began to prepare herself for the upcoming battle, of course, as her supporters continued to maintain their current holds on each other. She quickly began preparing all of her currently-available various weapons for various potential uses, as Serenity then began checking periodically on her other Scouts' progress toward where Whaleduck was still opposing his current foes. And he was then beginning to tire at least a little bit every so often where he now was located, which was quite close to, if not immediately above or on, the future grounds of the future Crystal Palace, in fact. Serenity's Scouts, as well, had also begun to quicken themselves as they headed toward the current battle's present location.

At Serenity's urging, then, Skyhorse began quickening the beat of her wings, so that they could all hopefully get there even quicker. Of course, when Skyhorse sped that beat up, Serenity then had to do the same, if she'd not already begun to do so, for all the obvious reasons. They both began to pick up even more speed for themselves, as they continued to fly through the Moon's own skies as they currently needed to do here.

Wherever necessary, Skyhorse and Serenity dodged various clouds or nearby ground terrain, quite naturally enough. By the time that they were all within a reasonable enough weapons range for Peppermint's various weapons, whatever those weapons of hers might actually be, Peppermint told them both, "Any time that you two actually want me to begin attacking Whaleduck's foes, you should both tell me. All my currently-available weapons are now quite ready for my use here, as needed."

"Fire when I say you should do so, then, Peppermint, and not before," said Serenity, not too long afterward. Peppermint agreed to do so, in very short order, then.

When they were then five hundred yards away from the nearest of Whaleduck's current opponents, Serenity asked, "Are you sufficiently close to use at least one of them now, Peppermint?"

"I need at least another 140 yards for most, if not all, of them to work well enough for me, I think, Serenity."

"We'll see what we can do, then, Peppermint," said Skyhorse, with Serenity's permission, not more than a few seconds later.

Just then, Peppermint briefly looked down, and said, "Serenity, the nearest of your Scouts is about twice our distance away from the location, it seems to me."

"Where are Luna and Artemis now?"

"Luna's on Mini Moon's left shoulder, while Artemis is on Venus's corresponding shoulder, it seems, Serenity," answered Peppermint.

Serenity said to her Scouts and cats, "Scouts, hurry it up even more, if you can. We'll need you to be near Whaleduck in the next five minutes, at most, I think. Luna and Artemis, when they get within five hundred feet of his position, you two are to both hop off the shoulders of the Scouts that you both are on now, and get under whatever amounts of cover that you each can find. Try to stay together as much as you can, you two, when you do so. Moon, prepare to use your weapons and powers now, and tell everyone else to do the same as well, of course. No debate here. For if you all aren't ready to fight by the time that any of you get within five hundred feet of Whaleduck's position, I don't know if we'll all be able to get back to our respective time periods easily enough here."

"Understood, Sentinel Serenity," Moon soon replied, after she and the rest of her current companions had acknowledged Serenity's latest orders to them, of course. The other Scouts began preparing for battle, if they'd not already done so, for all the obvious reasons, quite naturally. As they did so, Serenity then closed her current communications channel again, as well, in fact.

A minute or so later, at most, then, Peppermint said, "We're close enough for me to use my weapons, you two. Any time you want me to start doing so, just tell me."

"Then fire when ready, Peppermint," said Serenity, not more than a few seconds or so later. Peppermint wasted very little time and motion as she then began to attack the nearest of Whaleduck's current opponents. Several hits from her weapons later, that opponent of Whaleduck's turned away from him, and started trying to get to his newest opponent here. Fortunately, Peppermint and her two current supporters were still quite out of his reach, both physically and with his various weapons and powers.

Whaleduck took the chance that had just been provided to him by Peppermint's current distraction. And he proceeded to withdraw from at least one pouch or scabbard that he was now carrying, at least one knife or one sword, if nothing else as well, as the case might actually be for him at the current time. He then used whatever he'd just withdrawn from its holder or their holders on his current opponent to the best of his ability to do so. And within two or three minutes more, that opponent was no more, at least in the sense of actually being alive any longer. That opponent then quite loudly crashed to the ground without being able to make any more vocalized sounds of any sort. When he crashed to the ground around him, it sounded like a great flash of thunder and lightning, as a matter of fact.

Then Whaleduck motioned to the next opponent that he'd be fighting against, now knowing that someone had definitely aided him just moments before. Peppermint began attacking that opponent as Whaleduck also closed with it, at least covering Whaleduck's approach toward that opponent. As before, that opponent couldn't reach Peppermint or her supporters either, even after Whaleduck closed in on him. Five minutes later, then, after being attacked both by Peppermint and Whaleduck, at least, if not anyone else as well, that opponent also went the way of his unfortunate fellow monster. And he too crashed rather loudly to the ground, as the other one had earlier done.

By that time, then, all the other Scouts besides the three that were now in the air were on the scene to a sufficient enough degree. And they were engaging various monsters that were still holding captives in the present location of the battle. Jupiter, Chrysalis, and Venus, at least, if not anyone else as well, engaged one of the monsters, which were all quite strangely quite similar in average size to the monsters that the Scouts had earlier faced on Tarokauni III, at least, but they didn't necessarily look the same. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons. But they still weren't immortal, quite naturally. Monsters weren't generally immortal, as a rule, in any case at all. And the Scouts all knew that was true, at least. Whether they generally didn't know enough about monsters besides that or not, which might actually be the case here, as a matter of fact. Other Scouts attacked other monsters as they either wanted or needed to attack them as well. For instance, Moon, Mini Moon, Corona, Eclipse, Mercury, and Mars, at least, if nobody else as well, attacked one particularly large monster by themselves.

That monster then began charging on them, also heading in a direction that might bring him quite close to, if not right on top of, where Whaleduck was currently in the midst of a fight with yet another monster. Of course, they ran, if the need arose for them to do so, for all the obvious reasons. Peppermint saw them, seconds later, and she switched her main attack to that particular monster, just as Serenity then began using her Moonbeam Tiara Power Blast attack on the monster that was currently in the middle of a fight with Whaleduck.

Serenity generated several tiaras within thirty seconds, in fact. And she began using them as best as she possibly could on that monster that her future mother had switched her attacks from. Within a minute of her beginning to generate tiaras to use in attacks, she'd generated at least a dozen or so of them, if not more. And she was using them on that opponent of theirs. Skyhorse aided her with the help of some grenade-like canisters and a suitable weapon to launch those canisters from that Peppermint had just given her, even while they were still flying in the air.

Of course, in order for Serenity and Skyhorse to be able to use those current attacks of theirs, they'd have needed to have their hands free. So Serenity had called upon her Moon Star Web Power to at least some degree, so that she was still in at least some contact with Skyhorse, by the use of ropes. Which, in this particular case, each ran between Serenity and Skyhorse in the hip and/or waist areas of their respective uniforms, as a matter of simple enough fact here. Skyhorse and Serenity widened the gap slightly between them both, so that they'd have more room to use their current attacks. But they didn't widen that gap too much, for the obvious enough reasons. Mainly because of the simple fact that Peppermint definitely wouldn't be able to fly in the air if they were too far away from her, and if she somehow fell off them both quite accidentally, if not for any other reason whatsoever as well here.

Whaleduck and others continued attacking various monsters as the need arose for them to do so, including, of course, Peppermint. The one that'd been charging Moon and the members of her current cluster of Scouts fell primarily due to Peppermint's attacking of him, and he fell just mere inches from the nearest part of Whaleduck in the battle. Whaleduck saw that, and he was fortunately quite able to keep himself far enough away from that monster, when he crashed quite loudly on the ground near Whaleduck's current location.

Five to ten minutes later, then, it was all over, except for the shouting and the freeing of the monsters' captives, so to speak. Whaleduck soon made his way to where the captives had been held all during the battle. And he found that there were eight or so captives there. Among them was his future wife, though he didn't yet know that. And that future wife of his might actually someday turn out to be Abigail Calumet's own mother or grandmother, given the right circumstances, as a matter of simple enough fact here.

The Scouts soon freed the captives from their bonds, wherever necessary. And they all temporarily withdrew from the scene. At least for a few moments, anyway, so that they could transform back out of their respective Scout states, if they could possibly do so here.

Moments later, they found Whaleduck talking to at least one of the former captives that they'd helped to free just a little while before. And Whaleduck soon introduced everyone to the former captives as needed. One of them, he introduced as the Baroness Karenna, and he said, "She is the reason that I periodically have to become Sentinel Whaleduck. Though I don't really know why that is the case for me right now, I still know that it is. Maybe someday, I'll learn why it is the case for me right now in my life, people. But as for right now, at least, I don't really know why it is that way for me in my life."

"Maybe God wants you to protect me as much as you possibly can, whenever you're Sentinel Whaleduck," said Baroness Karenna, as she looked at her fellow former captives and all her other current companions. Those former captives, in fact, were other members of her own immediate family, as well as one or two of her life's closest friends.

"Maybe so, Baroness, but I don't always like quite suddenly becoming Whaleduck in my life." This, of course, was from Whaleduck, here.

"You don't seem to like fighting all that much, Whaleduck, do you?" asked Serena Moon, all of a sudden.

"No, I can't say that I generally like doing so, Serena Moon."

"Nor do I, as a matter of fact. But when the need actually arises, I still fight to the best of my ability to do so, just the same, Whaleduck."

"You mean when you're upset with your friends or relatives, don't you, Serena Moon?"

"At least then, if I have to, if not any other times in my life as well. I know of at least a few others who are a lot like the both of us, but you probably wouldn't know them. I have a question for you, however."

"Oh, is that so?"

"Yes, I do. Do you by any chance have a relative that is tall, dark, and clean-shaven?" She proceeded to describe Prince Darien to at least some degree, if not totally. Though she still left out his name, for obvious reasons, of course.

"No, I don't. But I know of at least one periodical visitor to Moon City that might reasonably enough fit the description that you just gave me here, Serena Moon. His name is Prince Yageru Kyotosho, and he claims to be from an underground village somewhere here on the Moon called Kyoto. Though where exactly it is, he won't say to a sufficient enough degree."

"Is he in Moon City's local area now?" asked Serena Moon.

"I believe so, Serena Moon. I do know that he's staying at the Crescent Earth Inn now, just outside of the main part of Moon City."

"Where exactly is that inn?" asked Queen Serenity.

"Look for the first quite large red cedar tree cluster to the east of the Imperial Palace. In the middle of it, there's a clearing. In the middle of that clearing, then, there'll be one white oak tree about thirty or so feet in average diameter." He proceeded to tell them all exactly how to access the inn within the trunk of that very same tree. And then, not too long after he did so, he let them all leave for that location, for all the obvious reasons. As they all did so, Luna and Artemis soon appeared and joined up with them all as well.

They left Whaleduck and the former captives alone again, so that they could go to the necessary tree, and so that Whaleduck could have at least some privacy with those former captives for at least a little while. Serenity, of course, led the way to that tree, quite naturally.

When they were all far enough away from Whaleduck and his current companions, Serena said, "Whaleduck is quite interesting, I think. He reminds me of Prince Darien and Dad for at least one reason that I can't quite understand at the current time, if I'll ever be able to do so somehow, Mother."

"Maybe so, Serena. But we can't pursue potentially romantic relationships with anyone at all from this particular time period. If I weren't married, however, I might possibly think otherwise, quite naturally."

"Time problems might arise?"

"At the very least, yes, if no other problems as well, Serena. And we're going to have to try to get back home to our own respective time periods before too much longer, as it is, anyway."

By the time that they all got to the necessary tree at least an hour or two later, a woman about Queen Serenity's age appeared just outside it, and she was sweeping a good-sized area in front of and around it. That woman soon introduced herself as the Prophetess Ruth. And she asked them if they were looking for Prince Yageru Kyotosho.

"As a matter of fact, Prophetess, we were," said Queen Serenity.

"I was expecting that you would be. I've been expecting you ever since you all first arrived in this time period because of whatever brought you here. And I've been waiting for you to show up here at the Crescent Earth Inn. I know that you met up with Sentinel Whaleduck, and that he told you of this inn. In fact, I happen to be his aunt, and I also know about his dual identity as both Duke Sebastien-Jean Ereugig and Sentinel Whaleduck. I have been a prophetess for at least as long as Queen Serenity has been a Sailor Scout in her own life, if I'm not too mistaken here. Prince Yageru Kyotosho is not actually from the Moon. Prince Yageru Kyotosho is actually from the Earth, as Prince Darien will eventually be, in fact. He comes from the same general area of Earth that Prince Darien will."

"Is that so, Prophetess?" asked Serena Moon, as Prophetess Ruth began to escort them inside her inn, and bring them to where Prince Yageru was staying in it.

"That's correct, Moon Princess Serena. Abigail, you and others were earlier wondering if your idea that you'd thought of would work well enough to get each of you back to your respective time periods sufficiently well. It'll work out well enough, if you have the help of my nephew Prince Yageru Kyotosho, my nephew Duke Ereugig, King Jason, and Queen Eve, at the very least, if no one else as well, when you try it out. You'll return to the Imperial Palace either with my nephew, or just before he comes there as well. By the time that you all then do so, Duke Ereugig will already be there with Baroness Karenna, at the very least, if nobody else as well. By local dawn of September 15, 174 BC, then, you'll all need to be in the same general area on and around the future Crystal Palace's grounds that you each actually materialized in earlier, if possible. And you'll all need to be in whatever Scout states that you each were in when you first appeared here in this particular time period of the Universe's history, if you all can be, here. The cats don't have to transform themselves by then, for all the obvious reasons, of course. The others that I have just mentioned here will also have to be near enough to you all in order for them to somehow make it possible for you to return to each of your respective time periods, as appropriate," said Prophetess Ruth.

"Did you inherit this power of prophecy, by any chance?" asked Raye.

"Yes, as a matter of fact. In fact, I am descended from Prince Obarok and his first wife, at the very least, Raye. My gift of prophecy has been passed down from his third daughter of that marriage between him and his first wife, at the very least, and primarily through the third children of the first, if not only, marriage of the appropriate descendants of Obarok and his first wife, if not even longer than just that. Sometimes the gift of prophecy has been passed down to more than one member of one, or more than one, of a particular family's generational history. Meaning, in essence, that in a particular family, there could be at least one, if not more than one, generation in which multiple descendants receive the gift of prophecy, Raye."

"Theoretically speaking, then, if I may, could this gift of prophecy even go back to Abel Adamson, somehow, Prophetess Ruth?"

"I don't know that for sure, Raye. But if I ever find out that it's true, somehow, I don't really think that I'd be too surprised about it, in fact, Raye."

Just then, they all arrived outside Prince Yageru's room in the inn, and Prophetess Ruth said, "All of you will not be able to fit in the room at the same time, I think. But I think that a few of you could be in there easily enough here, just the same."

"Who, in particular, do you suggest, then, Prophetess Ruth?" asked Queen Serenity, in very short order.

"You, for one. Abigail for another. Margaret for a third. Rini for a fourth. And Serena for a fifth. Everyone else, not at the current time, if at all." Prophetess Ruth said this as she began knocking on the room's door, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

"Why them and myself, if I may ask?"

"In your own time period, Queen Serenity, you are the Queen. Because of that, your presence in my nephew's room is required here. Abigail actually has to be there because it was originally her idea in the first place. Margaret is to be there because of the fact that she is to be your future mother, as she once was, in your own life. Serena is to be there, for she is your oldest daughter of six daughters in it as well. Rini is to be there, for she will eventually be, in time, your daughter Serena's future daughter, after the end of the Moon Kingdom. The Moon Kingdom will fall. There's no doubt about that in my mind at all. You surely will sacrifice it to save as many people and animals, at least, from a state of permanent death or destruction, as you possibly can, by using your Crystal and Wand to trap them all somehow. And you'll somehow send them to the distant future, to have some new futures of their very own, whether or not the Negaverse ever rises again. Which I'm sure that it'll do at least once more, if not even more than that, Queen Serenity."

"I am to be Rini's mother?" asked Serena Moon.

"Yes, Serena, you are to be. As you have undoubtedly already marked at least one such scroll that same way, in fact." Just then, Prophetess Ruth heard some very faint signs of movement in Prince Yageru Kyotosho's room of the inn.

"I am to be Serena's daughter?" asked Rini, quite surprised, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

"Yes, that is so, Rini. But you and so many others here won't actually know this for a fact again, once you each return to your own respective time periods. And at least not until you yourself, Rini, are later sent back in time to find her and so many others in her life of the late 20th Century and/or early 21st Century AD. You yourself, Rini, as a matter of fact, will think the Imperium Silver Crystal is lost, and you'll go hunting for her eventually. Some length of time after you do so, you then will learn that she is your mother, or that she'll be your mother, in your very own time period. And she'll eventually free your mother from whatever is holding her captive, somehow. But not without at least some, if not a lot of help, as a matter of fact."

"I see. Then that might explain why her hair reminds me quite a bit of my mother, Prophetess Ruth."

"Yes, I believe that it just might, once you remember that as well, Rini. But you still won't remember that for quite a while, after you encounter her in what is currently the future here, and what'd actually be the past for you in your life."

Just then, the room's nearest door to them all opened, and Prince Yageru appeared just inside his room. He then said, "Hello, Auntie Ruth. I suppose that these are the people you were expecting to come here to find me, if I'm not too mistaken here."

"But only five of them will be able to meet with you here, it seems."

"If that's the case, so be it. But I was expecting to be able to meet more of them at sufficient enough length here, in fact, Auntie Ruth."

"God hasn't apparently seen fit to allow more of them to meet with you here in your room, Yageru. If He had, then I'm sure that He'd have let me know that, of course, here."

"Who are we to doubt God's plan, then, Auntie? Mere mortals, that's what we are, and will continue to be, at least until His Son finally comes to collect all the saved souls in the Universe and bring them to Heaven forevermore, I believe. Send them in, then, if you will. And I'll meet with them in my rooms."

Prophetess Ruth did so, and she had everyone else return downstairs for a time with her. She even took all of the other people and animals with her to an underground cavern of sufficient size, and she provided food and drink for them all as needed. Amy was temporarily in charge of the remaining members of her current traveling group, as a matter of fact, after Serenity had chosen to put her in charge of them while she and others were absent for the time being, at least.

* * *

Now that all the fighting is done for this story, three chapters will close this story, in very short order, for sure. The next-to-last one should be especially sad, for many, of course, because many people will have to part from each other, and possibly for good, when they do during that chapter, whether they like it or not. But it won't be able to be helped, because that's the way life goes sometimes for people, you know, folks.

Until next time, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

This will be the last chapter before the return of many to their proper time periods, one way or another, folks. There will be a major discussion between six people about certain things related to that, among other things that they will discuss with each other. Those who are part of that meeting may not be able to share certain things related to that meeting with other Scouts currently accompanying them, if certain circumstances didn't require that to happen. But other matters, they might be able to discuss later on with them.

With no further ado, I'll give you chapter nineteen of _Time Vortex One_. Until later, then, folks, TUS out.

* * *

In The White Oak Tree

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 15, 174 BC

As Amy and others were otherwise occupied with consuming food and drink provided to them elsewhere by Prophetess Ruth, Serenity, two of her ancestors, and two of her descendants were also meeting with Prince Yageru Kyotosho, as needed, in his room. Serenity soon asked, "How are we going to be able to get back home to our respective time periods, with your help, Prince Yageru Kyotosho?"

"I will make it possible, with the help of so many others, for those of you who are, or will be, Queens in the Moon Kingdom's own history to link your Imperium Silver Crystals together somehow. This is so they can provide at least enough power to summon forth the same phenomenon or phenomena that you all experienced when they grabbed each of you from your respective time periods, if not also to make it grab you all up again and return you to each of them as needed. Then everyone else might possibly have to use at least some of their own power as well, to make sure that you all can return to each of your own time periods well enough, and safely enough. I don't yet know for sure whether that'll be necessary for those of you who aren't actually from the Moon, but it may very well turn out to be the case that it'll be, Queen Serenity."

"But Queen Eve will not be a Scout as of that time, I think."

"Maybe not, Queen Serenity, but she'll still need to make her Imperium Silver Crystal available at least partly, if not entirely, for my use, just the same. Or none of you will actually be able to get back to each of your respective time periods, somehow."

"What will happen if we don't return to them?"

"Abigail, if you don't return to them, then the enemies of the Moon Kingdom or of any successor government will conquer whatever worlds and time periods that you each come from in your own lives, most likely, if they possibly can somehow do so at all."

"Even the Negaverse, Prince Yageru Kyotosho?" asked Serena Moon.

"Most especially the Negaverse, and if they get sufficient control of this world and the other inhabited worlds of this solar system, they'll never leave it voluntarily, no matter what. And they might even try to do the same with any other possible solar systems they might ever find anywhere else in the Universe as well, Serena."

"So we must all actually return to our respective time periods, Prince Yageru Kyotosho?" asked Margaret and Rini together.

"Yes. Otherwise all will most likely be quite lost for any or all of you others in the Universe, at least for quite some time, if not forever, Margaret and Rini."

"And if the combined powers of all our Imperium Silver Crystals aren't enough to allow those of us who aren't actually native to this particular time period to get home to our respective time periods, then what?"

"Then, Abigail, at least one or two, if not more, of your other companions will have to help provide power to power the multi-period time transfers that'll have to be executed. Or to do that for as long as they can then do so, before they too have to try to return to each of their time periods as well. Whether or not any of you are still here in this particular time period, as a matter of fact, if and when they're whisked away from it."

"And what if we still don't have enough power built up?" asked Abigail, in very short order.

"Then, I suppose Sentinel Whaleduck and I will have to contribute at least some power from ourselves, Abigail. And somehow do so for at least as long as it takes for those of you who may still remain in our time period to return to each of your respective time periods, if not even longer than that here. No matter what those time periods might actually be for each of you, for all the obvious reasons, of course."

"I see," said Abigail, moments later.

"One way or another, though, we'll somehow make absolutely sure that each of you returns to whatever time period or time periods that you each came here from. No matter what the cost, Abigail and everybody else who is now here with me in my room, we'll still do so. Even if we must actually die for some reason while making it possible for you to return to each of your own time periods in the Universe's history, none of you will be stranded here in this one for the rest of your own mortal lives."

"But if you die, then what of your future descendants?"

"Then I suppose they won't exist any longer, if they currently do, of course, Rini."

"I suppose so. For if a certain ancestor dies before a certain descendant of his or hers is at least conceived, then I suppose after him, or her, as the case might then be here, there'll be no more descendants of himself or herself besides the ones that are already existing up to that point in time," said Rini.

"That's logical enough, I suppose, Rini."

Serena got a rather strange idea of a sudden, and then asked, "Do you know of a Prince Darien in your life yet, Prince Yageru Kyotosho?"

"Not personally. But I know somehow that he'll be one of my future descendants, if this idea of Abigail's works out well enough for all concerned. So I must survive somehow, if that's the case. For at the current time, I have no wife, due to the fact that I'm just about nineteen or so Terran years old, and have only been on my own for about two or three of those years, after my parents died rather suddenly during a trading mission to Europe. My parents and all my male siblings were lost when some Chinese ships found one of our convoys of trading ships, and sunk most of the trading ships in that convoy, even though they were being escorted by several ships from the Japanese Resistance's naval forces at the very same time here, Serena. The Japanese Resistance was made up of those that were opposed to China's taking over of our home islands, either by diplomatic, or by military, means. And of my parents' ten children, only I and three of my five sisters definitely enough still remain alive, as far as I currently can tell, in my life. Ever since my parents and my brothers died as they did some time ago, I've been largely trying to hide from those who are now undoubtedly seeking me on the Earth. I have periodical contact with my remaining sisters, whenever I can possibly have such contact with them, but it's never in person, in actual physical reality. I do most of the contacting with them, while they only rarely are able to do the same with me on their end. They're all hiding as well back on the Earth as best as they can from our known enemies, and it's not yet safe enough for me to return to the Earth in the exact same manner as I came here. Maybe someday, it will be again. But just not yet. I knew that one of my aunts lived here on the Moon, and I located her to the best of my ability to do so, before I ever left Earth."

"How did you leave Earth then, if I may ask you this?" asked Serena Moon, in very short order.

"A series of strange messages suddenly appeared to me one night where I was then hiding, and they directed me to an underground cavern. After they did so, a portal of some sort that I can't quite describe well enough to you all here appeared in front of me. I saw another message for me come through it, and it told me to say and do certain things. Then the portal grabbed me away from that location with everything else that I had with me at that time, and brought me to a location quite near here on the Moon. I soon found this inn, and I found that aunt of mine that I've just mentioned here, Serena Moon. And ever since, I've been here, whenever the need arises for me. But I'm not always here, for I periodically go elsewhere on the Moon, as the need or desire ever strikes me, in my life here on the Moon. I can't tell you exactly why that's the case, in fact. But I can tell you at least that it's the case for me periodically in my life here on the Moon. I'll most likely never return to the Earth in my lifetime. And I'll most likely die somewhere here on the Moon. I may not like it very much, of course. But I still accept that there are some things in my life that I actually won't be able to change in it somehow."

The five females now in his room with him talked at least a little while, if not a long while, longer with him, until he felt that he'd done so long enough. After he felt that, he then pulled a certain rope-like bell chain near his sleeping area in the room, so as to let his aunt know that he was wishing her to escort his visitors out of his room again. Not long afterward, then, his aunt returned to the door outside his room in her inn, and she escorted all of his visitors out of his room again.

Then Prophetess Ruth brought them all downstairs again, so that they could rejoin the rest of their current companions prior to their return to the Imperial Palace's own grounds. As she did so, she reminded them all that whatever they'd discussed with him most likely wasn't to be discussed with the rest of their current companions at all, if possible, under any circumstances whatsoever, in any of their lives.

Certain things, though, might be able to be discussed with other members of their traveling party, while others most likely wouldn't be able to be discussed with those members as well. She realized that certain things which related to specific crystals that were now in the Scouts' possessions might need to be discussed at sufficient enough length, of course. But she didn't necessarily have to like that fact at all, just the same, in her own life. Other things, however, that she knew they'd talked about with her nephew, she did know that they'd most likely never reveal at all in their lives, if they didn't absolutely have to do so at all in any or all of them, for all of the obvious reasons, at least.

After Prophetess Ruth brought Serenity, Serena, Rini, Margaret, and Abigail back to wherever the rest of their current companions were, it was at least a little while, if not a long while, after local midnight, and it was now September 15, 174 BC, as of the current time. Serenity, Serena, Rini, Margaret, and Abigail each then got at least a little bit of food and drink for themselves over at least the next twenty or thirty minutes. And they all consumed all that food and drink for themselves in relative silence, before they eventually left with the rest of their current companions, and after thanking Prophetess Ruth for making it possible for them to do so as well.

Not too much later, then, everyone returned to each of their currently-assigned Imperial Palace chambers at least long enough to take a rather short nap, if they wanted or needed to do so at all. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons, no doubt. And, as a matter of fact, all of them did so, even the cats Luna and Artemis.

* * *

Two chapters remain for this story. The out-of-time visitors to the Moon of 174 BC will return to their respective time periods, one way or another, in the next chapter. Many tears will certainly be shed, but that is going to be unavoidable in certain cases, for sure. Others may not cry, but certain people definitely will, without any doubt at all. Who cries and who doesn't, you'll just have to read on and find out, of course, everyone. And who we might see again in this series, you'll have to wait and see, as well.

I hope you all have enjoyed this story so far, and have been entertained at least a little. But seriously, though, if you don't or haven't yet read every chapter in the series so far, you may miss things along the way, with future stories in it, including _Operation Cocoon One_ , in truth, that are rather important to the development of things and people in this story series. So, PLEASE, read every chapter, if you haven't already. Things are going to get a lot more hairy, so to speak, for many in the Solar System very soon, for sure. And you may not understand certain things well enough in the future if you don't, I think.

Until the next chapter, then, I'll close this. TUS out.


	20. Chapter Twenty

This is the next-to-last chapter of this story. By the end of it, only those native to the late 10th Century AD will still be present in the globe that will return them to their proper time period, including both cats, when and where the need arises for them to do so for each being still in it. And they will arrive back in it at the proper times and in the proper places, as well, for that matter, when they each leave that globe as they ultimately will be leaving it.

With no further ado, then, I'll close this. Until later, TUS out.

* * *

Outside The Future Crystal Palace's Future Walls

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

September 15, 174 BC

Sometime later, and about an hour or two before local dawn, then, all the necessary people began assembling in the necessary areas on and around the grounds of the future Crystal Palace. All the necessary people were in each of their respective Scout states, as was appropriate for each of them at that particular time. If they had any at all, of course. As they began taking their proper positions on and around the grounds of the future Crystal Palace, several nearby birds and animals began making certain sounds or noises that were appropriate for each of them, if they didn't do anything else at all at the current time. Some of the people that might now be where they were each taking certain positions had not actually been around in them at the same time that the Scouts first appeared in their current time period. But they'd need to be around in order for the beings who were actually alien to this time period to be able to somehow return to each of their own time periods, as a matter of fact.

If things worked out well enough, then, just as time had reversed for the members of Serenity's current traveling party when they'd left Tarokauni III behind, time would reverse enough to allow them all to return to the exact same times in each of their time periods that they'd been carried away from them in. First by bringing them backwards in time to the date of August 7, 174 BC, and then forward or backward in time again, until they were each able to return to the exact same moments in each of their time periods from which they'd been carried away earlier. They'd be returned in reverse order of their respective capturings by the phenomenon or phenomena that had carried them away from each of their respective time periods, in fact. This would be for all the obvious reasons, of course, if not for any other reasons as well at the exact same time here.

It took every single one of the necessary beings at least a little while, if not a long while, for them to each take the necessary positions on or around the future Crystal Palace's grounds. But eventually, they all did so, in fact, before it was somehow then too late for any or all of them to do so at all.

Eventually, everyone now present began doing whatever else they then had to do, as they also awaited their expected departures from the year 174 BC. Supposing, of course, that they weren't actually from this particular year in the Universe's history, quite naturally. Even if they had to stay quite still as they did so, as well. Like Serena, for instance. She really wasn't liking the fact that she had to stay rather still for at least ten minutes at a time, if not even longer, while she also waited to be brought back to her own particular time period in the Universe's history.

But she still stood as still as she could, just the same, no matter what her feelings actually were, as of the current time. Other members of her current traveling group also had to do the same thing periodically as well. Which then lessened the feelings of boredom, at least, that she was often feeling whenever she had to stay quite still in her current location, wherever it might actually be on or around the future Crystal Palace's very own grounds, for all the obvious reasons.

Local dawn eventually came and went, and yet, the aforementioned period of three complete days since the flying away of the necessary eagle had not totally elapsed. Time was still passing, but it wasn't necessarily passing as quickly as Serena and other members of her own crowd might often prefer it to do then. For they were still at least a little ways from the end of that period of exactly 72 hours in duration, which would end exactly three days after the plaque they'd all left marks on had disappeared from view, in fact.

Amy had also somehow been able to get at least one, if not more than one, scroll at least partially filled with the names of various members of their traveling party, if not completely. And just before she and so many others had needed to come to the places where they now were on or around the future Crystal Palace's grounds, she and at least a few others had actually buried them exactly where she'd earlier suggested to Serena some time before. She and the rest of those other people, whoever they might actually have been then, had somehow been able to do just that well enough, in fact. And to hide them all in the necessary enough manners as well, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

Finally, though, all the necessary crystals were linked together in the required way or ways. And all the Sailor Scouts and their current associates assumed their appropriate positions again, if they'd not already done so to a sufficient enough degree here.

Five to ten minutes, then, before the end of the aforementioned period of 72 hours in duration was to end, King Jason and all the other necessary people did all the things that they had to do by then. When they did so, the visitors to the present time period began de-materializing once again. And they'd have to remain in such a state at least until it was again August 7, 174 BC, and they'd have to briefly reappear again, if not even longer than that. As time reversed its normal direction of flow, all the members of Serenity's current traveling party vanished from the view of all the other people that'd been around them at the same time they'd started to vanish to those very same people.

All of the members of Serenity's current traveling party stayed invisible to all other beings around them, at least until it was the proper time for them to once again appear for a brief enough period of time. As they began appearing briefly, they also found themselves exactly where they'd been right after being deposited in their pasts. Time froze briefly, just after that point of time. But only briefly, so it would appear to those outside the area in which they now were, and once had been, that they were winking into existence out of thin air. And the same thing that'd brought them there in the first place reversed its previous actions, and grabbed them up again, while time was again running in reverse from its normal direction of flow.

The phenomenon or phenomena that had earlier carried them away from their respective time periods in history then eventually caught them up again in it or them, and they were no longer on the Moon of 174 BC. Starting with the very last of the people and/or animals that it or they had earlier captured, each of the necessary sentients were deposited back in their own time periods in the reverse order of their having been caught up originally in it or them.

The first of the Scouts to be deposited in her proper time period, and at the exact same moment she'd been taken away from it, was Super Sailor Rainbow, when she was dropped off in that time period. The next ones of them to be carried out of the globe were Sailor Bellasina and Clarissa, as the need arose for them both to each be expelled out of it, in fact. Sailor Jasmine soon enough was dropped back into her own time period at the appropriate time and place in it. After Sailor Jasmine, the next one to leave the globe in question at the current time was Sailor Cinnamon, when her own proper time and place came for her to be expelled from the vortex's interior globe.

Sailor Chrysalis soon followed, as did Sailor Calypso. After Sailor Calypso, the next one to be kicked out, so to speak, of the present globe was Sailor Bamboo. Sailor Bamboo dropped out of the globe by the time that the year AD 750 came and went, most likely, if not even sooner than that. As each of the other Scouts then eventually were expelled from the vortex, Moon and the rest of her current crowd continued to watch and wait for their turns to come to them, for all the obvious reasons, of course.

Skyhorse said to Serenity, just before her very own turn to leave eventually came to her as well, "It's been nice to know you to at least some degree, Serenity. Please try to make sure that the next Skyhorse does at least half as well, if not actually as well, that I'll have done before I quit being Skyhorse for any reason whatsoever. Whatever I leave behind, you're to give to her, if at all possible, Serenity, whenever you possibly can. It may not necessarily be my Imperium Silver Crystal. But it may happen to be my Skyhorse Crystal, just the same. Please try to do all you can to make sure that she'll be a rather good Scout for you and your daughters to fight alongside with when you have to fight the Negaverse again at least once more in all your lives, if she is around in your own time period."

"You can count on me trying to do all that to the best of my own abilities to do so, Skyhorse. Jostara, I wish I could get to know you at least a little bit better, and I'm sure that a lot of others with me do too. This, of course, is for all the obvious reasons."

"Well, I don't know if we'll ever meet again in our own mortal lives, Serenity, in fact. But if we do, and we remember this shared adventure of ours well enough, Serenity, I would be honored to fight alongside you and all your Scouts, if possible, in the future. I hope that the future that you will be part of will be rather peaceful, at least for a sufficient enough period of time. I realize that it may not always be so for you and all of our people and animals who may then be with you in your life. But I still trust that you will always do the right thing, whenever possible, for our Moon Kingdom's various inhabitants. Even if it actually does mean that you'll have to sacrifice our Moon Kingdom and your life to save as many of our Kingdom's inhabitants and things as you possibly can, I still trust that you'll always do the right thing, whenever possible, in your very own mortal life. My time for returning to my own time period is almost here now. Fare thee and thy Moon Kingdom well, God willing, then, Serenity."

Just then, and mere moments before she'd have to leave the globe for her own time and place in the Moon Kingdom's history, everyone else who was still in the globe with her said, "Jostara Wallace, who is and was the original Sailor Skyhorse in any possible power level, fare thee well. And we shall always remember you, if at all possible, in each of our lives, for as long as we possibly can. May God bless you quite abundantly, whether or not you ever are quite often in your Scout state, Jostara Wallace, the once and future Skyhorse of the original variety. Fare thee well, for as long as possible. And may God always walk quite closely with you in your own mortal life."

"You're welcome, Scouts. I wish the same for all of you as much as I possibly can in my own mortal life. If we ever do meet again, so be it. But if not, always try to enjoy your lives as much as you all possibly can, whenever you possibly can. And always trust in the One True God of the Universe with all of your hearts. Fare thee all well, Scouts, and may He always walk with you, even through the darkest times that are yet to come for many, if not all, of you in each of your lives." She could, and did, say no more before the vortex's globe then ejected her from it in very short order.

The end of the Ninth Century AD soon passed by, as well. It wasn't too much longer before Peppermint would have to leave the globe herself. The last five or ten minutes, at the very most, before she'd actually have to do so, were mainly spent by her, Serenity, Serena, and Rini, at least, in a more secluded part of the globe that had just appeared moments before. And this was where they all eventually said their respective goodbyes to each other as best as they possibly could say them to each other right here and right now.

Serenity, for instance, said to Peppermint, "I will miss being with you like this, if we never meet again like this. Granted, I am older than you apparently are, right now. But you are still actually my very own mother, and I will always consider you that. Even if I may now look like I'm your mother, and not now your daughter, I still will consider you that. I also wish I could actually know you enough like this when I am, and was still, a young girl. But I don't think that I'll ever be able to do that well enough, Mother, in my very own life."

"Some people say that the Imperium Silver Crystal can actually slow the aging process for those who may possess it, Serenity."

"Maybe so, but I still think that I might remember you better as an adult than I might remember you as a young girl, for all the obvious reasons, Mother. I really don't know how much, if any, of this particular adventure of ours that we'll each remember, once we finally return to our respective time periods. I hope that in time, you actually will remember at least enough to remind me of this adventure of ours, if at all possible, in your own life, at least, Mother."

"So do I, Serenity. And I really wish that I could actually know your children better than I do now know them. Or at least those of them who I know that I've somehow met during this adventure of ours, of course. But if I must go to the Celestial Palace and City before any or all of them are actually born, so be it. I really do hope that I won't have to. But I may still do so, just the same." She said this as she also briefly enough looked at her once and future daughter Serenity Louise Caranski Moon. The once and future Queen Serenity said very little, if anything, more to her mother at the current time.

After looking for a long enough time at her daughter Serenity, Peppermint continued to speak, "Serena Ruth Teresa Hope Rose Moon, if indeed you do have Rini in the future, please try to treat her reasonably well, whenever possible. And try to uphold the honor and the dignity of the blood that will always run within your own veins. You yourself will always have the blood of Moon Kingdom royalty in them. Even if you do actually marry a Terran male named Prince Darien. If Prince Darien is at least half as good as your own Mother and you seem to think, if not also Rini as well, then I have absolutely no doubt that your shared love will last for quite a very long time, if not forever." She paused yet again, so that she could look over her future granddaughter at least a little bit. And she also did that here just so that Serena could say whatever she wanted to say to her own grandmother, before it was too late for her to do so at all. As her own mother had done not too long before here, Serena didn't say much of anything, if anything at all, to Sailor Peppermint, also for all the obvious reasons, at least, if not any others as well, of course.

"As for you, Miss Serena Abigail Shields, please do all that you possibly can do to make as sure as you can that your people are taken care of as best as they possibly can be, at least while you still live your life. Whether you spend them on the Moon, the Earth, or anywhere else in the Universe, Rini, please really try to do that somehow in your own life. And please do really try to remember that within your very own veins will flow the blood of at least two worlds, if not even more than just two worlds, for as long as you actually do live, and exist, in your very own mortal life, at least, Rini. For you'll actually unite at least two worlds at some yet-undetermined time, under the perfect guidance of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, if it's truly God's will that you'll actually do so someday in your life, Rini. Whether it's your mortal one or your immortal one, you'll actually do so, if it's actually God's will that you ever do so someday." Of course, Peppermint said all these things to Rini, before she quite soon afterward quit speaking as well.

Rini said her farewells to Peppermint not too much later, if she'd not already done so by then, at least well enough to suit her to a sufficient enough degree. And as her future mother Serena and her future grandmother Serenity had both done, she had very little, if anything, more at all to currently say to Sailor Peppermint, prior to the time that Sailor Peppermint would have to leave the globe. As soon as everyone that was still in that rather secluded part of the globe realized that it was very unlikely that they'd say anything more to each other at the current time, they left that very same part of the globe as quickly as they could do so.

Then, within another minute or so, at most, Peppermint had to leave the vortex's globe for her own time and place in the Moon Kingdom's history. Serenity said, "I hope that we'll always remember enough of this adventure, people, so that, if possible, we can eventually tell our children about it, in each of our lives and theirs."

"Queen Serenity, is your heart quite sorrowful at the current time?" asked Mercury.

"At least part of it is, Amy. But I'll still adjust to this absence of hers from me, just the same, somehow, if I can. I've missed her before, and I undoubtedly will do so again, Amy. But I will still adjust to her being away from me again, at least to some degree, as long as I possibly can do so in my life."

"You're talking about when you lost her because of the explosion of her spaceship, aren't you?" asked Mars and Mercury together.

"Yes, Scouts, I am. But life quite often doesn't necessarily go as well as someone might actually want it to go in their lives. It'll probably quite seriously break my heart to send those of you away that I can possibly send away from the Moon Kingdom. But I'll still do it to the best of my ability to do so, if and whenever the need actually arises for me to do just that somehow."

As they awaited the eventual departures of Mini Moon and the rest of the Scouts who were from the area of the 30th Century AD, everyone spent most of at least the next several minutes, if not even longer than that, in relative silence. The first of them to disappear again would most likely be Mini Moon, as a matter of fact. For she was apparently the youngest of all the remaining occupants of the globe now in question here. And her specific time was sometime later than the time period that Twilight, Starhawk, and Nightwalker would have to drop back into, at the necessary time here.

Mini Moon gathered all her things closer to her quite quickly, then, if she'd not already done so by then. No more than just a few minutes before she'd have to leave the globe as well, she said, "Mother, please take care of yourself really good, and please don't let Daddy ever get too far away from you for a long enough time, if you can possibly avoid it at all."

"Oh, Rini, you have my word, and I am sure that you also will have the word of any other people that'll be with me at whatever time or times that you may be speaking of here, that we'll do all we can to make sure that he won't ever get too far away from me for too long a time. I may not actually be your mother yet, but I still love you just the same. As I am quite sure that your own mother actually does, in your own particular time period." Just after she said this to her future daughter, both she and Mini Moon suddenly ran into each other's arms while both of them began crying at full blast, just as Serena Moon had quite often been known to do in her very own life back on the Moon. Both of them cried quite intensely in each other's arms as everyone else watched and tried to cover their ears as best as they all possibly could cover them.

But eventually, the crying had to stop, for Mini Moon was going to have to leave the globe too, of course. Then Mini Moon released Moon, and went back to where her things were all collected in a suitably-sized pile of items. Just seconds before she was ejected, she suddenly gave a final salute to all of the Moon-born Scouts that still remained in it, most especially to her future mother, in fact. Less than five seconds after she finished doing so, the part of the globe that she and her things were all either sitting or standing on dropped out from under her and her things. A rather small plume of mostly pink smoke of sorts very briefly appeared, near where she'd just been. And then no further sign that she'd ever really been in the globe remained visible to anyone else who was actually still in the globe.

Moon almost burst out crying again, but Mars said, "God willing, Moon, you'll see her again in time. This I'm totally sure of. I don't know how many of us will ever see her again at least once more. But I do know that you still will do that again, in fact."

"Are you sure, Mars?"

"Count on it, Moon. Count on it very much, I believe, Moon. If any of us ever see her again, you and Darien most certainly will, if none of the rest of us ever do again."

"I'll try to do that, Mars. Thanks for cheering me up again, here!"

"Friends are supposed to do that for each other, whenever possible, in each of their lives. And even if we may fight with each other, I still consider you one of my very best friends ever, Moon."

Not too much later, then, Twilight, Starhawk, and Nightwalker, at least, eventually began collecting their things as well, and putting them exactly where they'd then need to put them around themselves. Whether those things had to be on their person, or they didn't have to be, they still did so, just the same. Finally, with wisps of smoke that were of the appropriate enough colors for each of them, all three of them were ejected as well from the globe, when their time or times for them to be ejected from it came to them again, if they'd done so at least once before in each of their lives. Which was most likely not actually the case for any or all of them, here.

That then left only sentients in the globe who were actually from Serena's time period back on the Moon, quite naturally. Specifically, only about two dozen of them, as a matter of fact. Those sentients were eight Peruvian Monitors who were also Scouts, two cats, all four of the Beta-level Scouts of Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, and eight Scouts that could then be considered to be Inner Scouts, in fact. Meaning, specifically, for those Inner Scouts, at least, Serenity, Moon, Corona, Eclipse, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus.

All of them quite soon afterward then got themselves in the exact same positions relative to each other that they'd been in earlier, when the time vortex had earlier captured them all. Or if they couldn't yet do so well enough at the current time, they all got themselves as much as they then could get into those positions, and waited for their eventual ejections from the globe now in question here, of course.

The date that they'd have to get back to would be June 10, 987, and the place would be somewhere sufficiently close to the Double Earth Palace of Crescent, back on the Moon. For that was when and where they were when they were all earlier captured by the time vortex that actually had whisked them out of their own time period. The Scouts had been patrolling in the area of Crescent for some time, while the cats had hid as best as they could when the vortex had appeared close enough to the aforementioned Moon Kingdom palace. But neither of the cats were actually able to keep themselves from being sucked into the same vortex that'd also just captured all the Scouts that'd been patrolling in the Crescent area of the Moon.

About five minutes or so before they were due to leave the globe, then, they were all just as ready as they possibly could be to leave it, in fact. Even Moon was as ready as she could be for whatever might happen next here, as well.

Most, if not all, of the remaining time that they had left to them before they were due to be ejected out of the globe now in question, they basically spent in relative silence, whenever possible. Even if a lot of things might have actually been on their minds as they awaited their eventual dismissals from the globe, they basically were quite silent while they did so, just the same.

* * *

This story ends with the next chapter. I will start posting _Operation Cocoon One_ 's text very soon. Maybe even sometime tomorrow or Friday, at that, at the latest. I hope you all have enjoyed and been entertained by this story at least a little bit, though, folks. But if not, then so be it. I will likely begin editing and/or revising it once I am done doing the same with the rest of Book III and all of book IV for this story series, of course. I do not know yet just how long it will take to edit and revise those two stories, for sure. But I still do hope to have Book VI up completely by no later than the end of this month, if at all possible, in any case, to be completely honest with you all here.

As for book VII, it is yet-unknown just how long it will take to completely write and post it, but I'm hoping to finish doing so by no later than the end of June, at this point, if I can. I may not be able to complete it until fall 2019 comes, though, folks.

Until next time, then, I'll close this, but not before reminding you all as seriously as I can that if you haven't read all existing chapters by now for this story series, even for Book III, that you all really DO need to try and do so, just as soon and as well as you possibly can, folks. That's so that you may be better able to follow along with future events and existing or new characters as this story series continues to develop as necessary and all, for sure. TUS out.


	21. Chapter 21

This is the last chapter of _Time Vortex One_ , and it has been a wild and crazy adventure for many, with many unexpected occurrences during it. Much history has been revealed about the Moon Kingdom and at least a few of its leaders, and its societal and cultural developments, et cetera, for sure. I have not decided when and if most of the characters seen in this story will appear again later in its story series who are not native to the Moon Kingdom of the late 10th Century AD, but we may indeed see at least a few of them later on in the series, if and when I might feel the need to have them appear again in it, folks.

Feel free to let me know if and when you would like to see more of certain characters in this story series who aren't yet major characters in it, at least. If you do, maybe I can find a way for them to appear at least once more in it, even if they've only appeared in this volume for it so far. After all, this story has been called _Time Vortex One_ , and seeing as that's the case, there'll obviously have to be at least a story called _Time Vortex Two_ at some point for its series, you'd think, right?

Until later, then, I'll close this. I really hope you enjoy and are entertained by the last chapter of this particular story, though, of course, everyone. TUS out.

* * *

Near And In The Double Earth Palace

Crescent, Moon Kingdom, Moon

June 10, 987

Eventually, they were all expelled in the exact same manner that all the other members of their earlier traveling party had been when their times had come to each of them. And they were all dropped exactly where they'd all been captured by the vortex, no matter where it was, in the area of Crescent on the Moon. This meant, of course, that Luna and Artemis were returned to their hiding places under certain bushes and/or trees on the Double Earth Palace's grounds. While each of the Scouts was deposited exactly where they'd been when captured by the vortex themselves, not too long after the cats had been restored to their previous locations on the Double Earth Palace's grounds in Crescent.

In the exact reverse of the order they'd earlier been captured in by the vortex, then, each of the still-remaining Scouts was expelled from the globe now in question here. No matter when and where they'd all been at the times that they'd each been grabbed up in their turns by the aforementioned time vortex, they still were all returned in the exact same time and place that they'd each been taken from, in fact.

The last of them to be expelled from the globe by the vortex was Royal Sailor Serenity. For she'd somehow been grabbed up last of all the Scouts that'd been taken by the vortex from the late 10th Century AD. And she soon appeared exactly where and when she'd been taken up by the vortex as well. And in exactly the same form that she'd been in when she'd been taken up by it, as a matter of fact.

Serenity soon accounted for all her current companions. And she saw that Luna and Artemis were no longer with them, at least not in a physical sense. But she knew that they'd been taken up by the vortex at least a little bit later than she and the other Scouts from this time period had earlier been. So she wasn't actually all that worried about Luna and Artemis at the current time.

And her present serenity about such things was proven to be quite appropriate, once she and all of her current companions had each returned to the Double Earth Palace's grounds. When they each finally finished doing what they'd earlier been doing when the vortex had grabbed them all up, they eventually found that Luna and Artemis were exactly where Serenity had expected them both to be. Which, in fact, had been right under at least one bush or tree on the Double Earth Palace's grounds, if not more than one of either kind of plant or both kinds of plants. For as she'd been taken up by the vortex originally, she'd somehow received a vision of Luna and Artemis trying to hide from the vortex as well. Even before they'd been picked up by it too. That was why she'd expected to find them under that bush or tree, or those bushes or trees, if not at least one of either. By then, all the Scouts had actually transformed back into their normal non-Scout states of being in their lives, no matter what those states of being were in actual physical reality.

Serenity said, then, right after finding her cats exactly where she'd expected to find them both, "I hope you're feeling okay, you two."

"We're fine, it seems, Niti. That was some adventure of ours, wasn't it?" asked Luna.

"You still remember it?"

"Yes, of course I do, and I'm reasonably sure that Artemis does too, Niti," answered Luna, in very short order.

"Just how long of a break do you really think we'll eventually find ourselves having, before our next adventure comes to us all?"

Artemis said, "I hope that it's a break that'll last at least a little while, of course, Serenity. This is for all the obvious reasons, quite naturally."

"I could most definitely do without having to fight monsters for at least a month or two, Artemis," said Serena. Her sentiments about such things were quite quickly echoed in quite similar manners by most, if not all, of her other current companions, in fact.

Lita eventually said, "I don't really know about the rest of you. But for some strange reason, I'm quite intensely feeling the urge to prepare a very large feast for this evening and night."

"Maybe you want us to celebrate the fact that we're actually back where and when we should be in our lives, Lita," said Raye.

"Yes, I suppose you might say that, Raye. And maybe even a little bit more powerful too, if I'm not too mistaken here, for at least one, if not more than one, of us. I mean, I didn't have at least one of my current powers when we all left here earlier like we did."

"Maybe so. But we still might not be able to beat the Negaverse well enough without Queen Serenity's help." These things were said by Mina, as a matter of fact.

"Well, I'm almost always ready to fight the Negaverse, whenever the need arises for me to do so. Even if it means my potential loss in battle. I really do hate seeing innocent people being picked on by monsters and other terrible things, in fact. And I'm quite sure that the rest of you would probably agree quite strongly with me about such things, whenever possible, in your own lives."

"And what if we all get killed by Queen Beryl and her forces, Lita?" asked Amy, a few moments later, as everyone soon began walking to the Double Earth Palace's main dining hall.

"Then we do, Amy. If I must actually die in battle, then I really do hope that I die while I'm still fighting to the best of my abilities to do what I can against our enemies. There's no greater honor in battle, if one must die in it, than to die giving your best possible effort in order to protect those who you're supposed to protect for as long as you can protect them in your own existence. I hope that if I ever do get killed in battle, it'll be while I'm protecting as many of my friends and relatives as I possibly can, to the best of my ability to do just that somehow. Including, of course, Serena, if the need ever arises for me to try to do that somehow. She may die before me, or I may die before her. But I'll still do my best to protect her and anyone else that I can, for as long as I can in my own existence, just the same."

"There may be a good chance that we'll all be killed by our enemies, Lita. Except for maybe Queen Serenity, of course," said Raye.

"Then so be it, Raye. I'll absolutely not run from any future battle, if I can possibly avoid it, if it comes, and I'm still alive and able to fight well enough in it. I won't kill myself either, if I don't absolutely have to and if I can possibly avoid it, in battle against any foes that we may ever face in our lives. No matter who or what they may actually be, I won't run or kill myself in any battle, if I can possibly ever avoid it at all."

"What if I can't possibly fight any longer, for any reason whatsoever, at least in this time period, eventually?" asked Serena.

"Then those of us who can still do so, somehow, I really hope, will do all they possibly can to protect you and anyone else who can no longer fight our enemies, in whatever time period we may actually find ourselves in, Serena," said Lita.

"Even if it may mean your deaths, Lita?"

"Even if it means our deaths. For we've promised to protect you with our very lives to the best of our respective abilities to do so, Serena. Just as countless other Scouts have most likely done ever since the very beginning of the Scouts, with the appropriate other people in their own lives. Whether they're Queens of the Moon Kingdom, or Moon Princesses of it," answered Lita.

"But what of those who are from Earth, by any chance?" asked Mara.

"I'm primarily talking about those Scouts who are actually from our Moon Kingdom, Mara," said Lita, as everyone eventually began entering the palace's main dining hall.

"Of course, there are probably others from other worlds in this Universe that have agreed to do the same thing, whenever possible, in each of their own lives, including those who've actually been from Earth in actual physical reality. And I happen to think that all eight of you who are actually also Monitors have now agreed to do so in your own lives, whenever possible. And I also do believe that the Israelite Princess Sylvia Wakefield has now also agreed to do so, whenever possible, in her own life, Mara." Everyone soon began getting themselves things to eat and drink as they saw fit to do there.

"As far as I know at the current time, I am the leader of all current Monitors, Lita. I don't really know if any of our other Monitors actually do still survive, in actual reality. Or if they do, what their statuses are, for all the obvious reasons. I really hate the fact that they've killed at least a few members, if not all the other members, of my family, at least. Plus at least a few members of at least a few other families from our nation, if not all of the rest of each of them."

"I've heard this strange saying from somewhere or someone that I can't quite recall at the moment, Mara. And I think it goes something like this, if I'm not too mistaken about such things here, 'Revenge is a dish best served as cold as possible,' or something similar to that. I don't know who or where I might have heard it from. But I still know that I've heard it or something sufficiently similar to it before, somewhere, at least once before in my life, if not more than that."

"Revenge can be quite poisonous, Lita. It can turn people into something or someone that they'd best not turn into in their lives. It'll do no good for us to act in a revengeful manner against our enemies. Or we will run the risk of being taken over by them," said Serenity.

"But who will avenge the Moon Kingdom, if it gets ruined by our enemies, if I may ask you this here?"

"I believe that vengeance is the Lord's, Lita. Whether it's gained by human means or by divine means, I believe that it's the Lord's, just the same, here. If the Moon Kingdom is to fall, then I'm sure that God will make it possible for it to be avenged in time. Even if it means that the Moon and all the other inhabited worlds of our Moon Kingdom must remain uninhabitable for at least a little while, if not forever. We must absolutely trust that He knows what's best for His entire Universe. Even for our own particular part of it, we must still do so, to the best of our respective abilities to do just that in each of our lives. If we die, we die. If we live, we live. He ultimately runs things in this Universe of His. Each of us has a finite amount of time we can live in His Universe, at least in our mortal bodies. And that'll always be the case for as long as we have such bodies for ourselves. Now I may actually be able to put you all to sleep, in a manner of speaking later. But that still won't change the fact that we'll each have a certain finite lifespan in our mortal bodies, until it's time for all of the rest of eternity to begin once and for all."

"Even if the Imperium Silver Crystal is involved?"

"Yes, Lita, even if it is. He created it, and He was the One who made it what it has been since its creation. If the Negaverse gets control of it, then no world in this solar system, at least, if not in any other solar system elsewhere in the Universe as well, may be safe from harm because of them. So we must do all that we possibly can to keep it away from our enemies. Most especially the Negaverse, for all the obvious reasons, of course. No matter what the cost to us and our worlds may actually be here."

All of the assembled people spent at least the next few hours with each other, if they wished to do so, before they eventually parted from each other for at least a little while, if not a long while. And they also did whatever they wanted to do for as long as they either wanted or needed to do it, before they'd eventually have to return once again to the Moon City area again.

Before local nightfall, however, at the very latest, they all assembled in the Double Earth Palace's South Garden with all the things that they either wanted or needed to bring back with them to the Moon City area of June 10, 987. They quite naturally did this for all the obvious reasons, of course. They left some of their things in their respective Double Earth Palace chambers, if and whenever they felt they could do so, and if Serenity allowed them to do just that somehow. Everything else, they quite naturally brought back with them when they returned to the cavern somewhere under the Crystal Palace of Moon City.

Before they left for the Moon City area of the Moon again, they all transformed into one of their respective Scout states, whether or not they had only one, or they had more than one, currently in each of their lives. Serenity became Royal Sailor Serenity before she'd have to teleport with the rest of her Scouts. Luna and Artemis took up the exact same relative positions in the Double Earth Palace's South Garden that they'd been in when they'd materialized there some time before. Which actually meant that they'd been on Serenity's very own shoulders at that time, of course. And so did all the other Scouts, when they actually each needed to do so, at the current time.

When Serenity saw that all of her Scouts and both cats were ready for the necessary teleport to a sufficient enough degree, she soon began the required teleportation process in the proper manner or manners. And she had all the others continue it as needed, at least until they were all light again, if not even longer than that, in fact.

Off the Moon's primary sun shield they all then went. And some length of time later, they all began materializing again on each of their appropriate tiles in the large depression that was in the middle of the cavern that they'd often teleported from in the past. The Monitors/Scouts materialized on the same tile or tiles that they'd left from earlier in that depression. If they didn't each have a certain tile for themselves, each of them materialized on a tile that was marked with the known astronomical symbol for Earth.

Eventually, all of them were totally accounted for by Serenity, including herself, of course. And she soon enough dismissed them, when their current situation actually allowed her to do so here, quite naturally enough. Even Luna and Artemis, as a matter of fact, could then leave, if they wanted to, after she did that.

As soon as they could do so, it wasn't very long afterward that Moon and the rest of her fellow Scouts, besides her mother, powered down, and hurried up to the surface as quickly as they could do so. As they all left after powering down again, Serenity quite soon began hearing quite a bit of gleeful enough laughter from her still-young charges. For they were exceedingly glad that they could get away from being Scouts for at least a little while longer, most likely.

She stayed in the cavern for about ten or fifteen minutes with her two cats. And she said, "My, Luna and Artemis, they must really be quite happy not to most likely have to be Scouts again for at least a little while longer, if I'm not too mistaken here about such things."

"I do believe that you're so right here, Niti," said Luna.

"Should I let them have fun for at least a while, if at all possible, then, Luna?"

"By all means, Niti, I think that you should, if possible. I mean, it'll probably be at least a little while longer before we'll have to fight any beings from the Negaverse again. God willing, of course. And remember, it's going to be your twin daughters' shared birthday tomorrow. So I think that you should let them have some fun for at least a while, if nothing happens to cut it short again for at least a while."

"I suppose you're right. This last adventure might have been quite hard on all of us, to at least some degree, if not to a great deal, Luna. But at least we had other Scouts with us at the same time, as we were having it."

"Even your own mother, who seemed to be much younger than you now are, during it, Niti," said Luna and Artemis together.

"Yes, even my own dear mother, you two. I miss her very much. And now that I've actually seen her as a rather young woman or girl, I miss her even more now."

"I suppose you might, Niti. But God saw fit to call her home to Him while she was with your father and a few of your siblings, as well as my parents and so many other sentients at the same time, Niti. Maybe because He obviously knew what was yet to come, and will come, for us here in the Moon Kingdom, I think. He may have thought that your parents might not have been able to protect our Moon Kingdom, at least as well as you might have been able to do, any longer. So He brought them home. Nothing He ever does ultimately works out for the worst for all of those who trust in Him, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. Supposing, of course, that they're actually saved for Him in their very own existences. He often works in quite mysterious ways, Niti," said Luna.

"But that doesn't mean I can't miss my parents, does it, Luna?"

"No, it doesn't. However, you should remember that they accepted His Son as their Lord and Saviour before their unfortunate deaths, Niti. And because of that, I believe that we'll all eventually see them whenever we want for the rest of forever, once all that's mortal and saved is made forever perfect in every single way in God's own Universe."

"Supposing, of course, that we're saved as well, I believe?"

"Yes, that's what I mean," said Luna.

Artemis said, "If you ladies will now excuse me, I think that I want to go see if I can find Mina again, so that I can take a nap in her chambers for a while."

"Fine. Do your thing, then, Artemis," said Serenity.

Artemis left almost immediately, followed at least a few minutes later by Luna. But both cats didn't necessarily go to the exact same place, in fact. Luna went, in fact, to Serena's Crystal Palace chambers. That left Serenity alone for at least a few minutes more, before she too eventually left the underground cavern through the necessary tunnel. Serenity spent whatever amount of time that she stayed alone there mainly reflecting rather silently on the events of her and her Scouts' most recent adventure. But even she didn't want to spend the rest of her life there, if she didn't absolutely have to do so at all, quite naturally. So she finally left them as well, and she began looking for her husband and/or her brother.

She left the cavern through the necessary tunnel. And she left the Sailor Scout Garden again as well. She went to her Crystal Palace chambers in very short order. And she went to sleep in her bed for at least an hour or two, if not even longer. Supposing that she wasn't disturbed by anyone or anything at any time even sooner than that, of course. She, in fact, only woke up again when Daniel found her lying down in her bed, and when he kissed her quite briefly on the lips.

She opened her eyes after he'd kissed her a few times on her lips. And she soon exclaimed, "It's so good to see you again, Daniel! You don't know how long it's been since I've seen your face in actual physical reality!"

"Sure I do, Niti. It was before you left for Crescent earlier today."

"Maybe to you, Daniel, but it seems like ages since I've seen your very wonderful face in actual reality."

"I don't understand, honey."

"I went more than a millennium into the past, Daniel, with my Scouts and our cats."

"And where were you, if I may ask?"

"Part of the time, we were in the Moon City area of 174 BC. And part of the time, we were on a world in another galaxy. But we were not alone, for several other Sailor Scouts were with us as well."

"Like Sailors Chrysalis, Calypso, and the Moon-born Skyhorse?"

"Exactly, darling. I saw my mother as a young girl, and as a Sailor Scout called Peppermint."

"Tell me whatever you feel you can about your adventure, please, Serenity. But only whatever you feel that you can tell me safely enough. I'd love to hear more about your mother, for instance, if you can tell me more about her than I may already know of her in my life."

"All right. You might want to sit or lie down, then, if you really want me to tell you as much as I can now tell you about our adventure in the past. While you do that, then, I'll make as sure as I possibly can that we're not going to be disturbed here for at least a little while, if we don't want to be, and don't have to be."

"I suppose that I could do that, then, Niti." He complied with her request, once he'd briefly gotten some water to drink from her bathroom area. As he got some water to drink, and he proceeded to do as she'd just suggested that he then do, she also secured her chambers in all the necessary enough manners, as well. After she'd done that, they spent much, if not the rest, of the evening and/or night in private with each other. What exactly they said and did after she secured her chambers from unnecessary intrusion would never be known, most likely, from that time on, by anything else mortal that hadn't been in them at the very same time. Those actions and words of theirs would most likely remain undisclosed to mere mortals forever, if at all possible. God would know, of course, all about them, and so might they, quite naturally, but nobody else mortal most likely ever would, in fact.

As for everyone else, they all eventually tried to get their lives as much back to normal as they possibly could, after the events of their most recent adventure as Sailor Scouts. This particular adventure, which had been quite weird, to say the very least, for them all in their own lives, they'd eventually call "Time Vortex One", for some reason they didn't yet know well enough in each of them. And it'd then join the four previous tales that were already part of the _Chrysanthemum Chronicles_ story series that it'd belong to, quite naturally. It, however, would most likely not be the last of the stories in that series. For the Negaverse hadn't yet been able to invade the Moon Kingdom to a sufficient enough degree, if they'd even thought about trying to do it by then. This was most likely for reasons that were probably too numerous to mention in great enough detail, at least as of the current time. But they'd eventually come. And they'd seek to conquer or destroy it to the best of their own abilities to do either or both of those things, Serenity and at least a few others in the Moon Kingdom were now quite sure in each of their own lives.

They didn't know yet for sure exactly when they would come against the Moon itself. But they knew that the Negaverse would eventually do so someday. And they knew that Serenity would most likely have to sacrifice both herself and her own dear Moon Kingdom in order to save as many of her Kingdom's current inhabitants as she might actually be able to save here easily enough and safely enough. No matter what the cost might actually be for her or for her Moon Kingdom, they now knew Serenity would most likely have to commit a dual sacrifice in order to save as many of her Kingdom's inhabitants as she possibly could save for the distant future.

But that time hadn't yet come. And, God willing, it still wouldn't come to pass for at least another few years, if not for at least another decade or so, in each of their lives. Or at least that was currently their most fervent and most obvious hope, of course, in them, whenever possible, if it wouldn't always be, in them. Whether or not it would actually come to pass in them, it wasn't yet known. But it'd eventually become known by all the necessary people, if and when the need ever arose for them to ever know it for any reason whatsoever at all, in each of their own mortal lives, at least. That was most definitely a certainty. No matter how long it might actually take for them to know it, if and when they ever had to know it for sure, in them.

* * *

End of Story Five

* * *

This hereby concludes Book V for _The Chrysanthemum Chronicles_ story series. _Operation Cocoon One_ will follow this story in very short order, most likely. I'll try to begin posting it as soon as I can, folks, and if I remember things correctly enough from it, both Sylvia Wakefield and Rolando Volois will be major participants in both Books VI and VII of this series, as well.

So it might be a very good idea for you all to read every chapter of Books II and III, at least, to re-familiarize yourselves with them, as best as possible and as quickly as possible. Sylvia also appears in Book IV, while Rolando may not be seen much in that particular volume, if I remember correctly.

Expect more adventures for all the main Scouts for quite a while yet, folks. They won't generally be very pleasant from now on, or at least not for the most part, anyway. But they will still have some adventures coming their ways periodically, of course, as the fall of the Moon Kingdom inevitably will continue to approach them all, for sure.

Until the next story, then, folks, I'll close this. Thank you for reading this story and all, if you have, and I hope you join me and perhaps others when the next story in this series finally begins to be posted. TUS out.


End file.
